Sheldon Keefe confirms the bad news for Ilya Lyubushkin.

This is a bit of a tough break for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

There were smiles all around the Maple Leafs locker room on Saturday with veteran defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin back in the fold following a trade last week with the Anaheim Ducks. Not only were many of the Leafs who had played with Lyubushkin during his first tenure in Toronto happy to see the popular teammate make his return, but it was a nice addition for players like goaltender Ilya Samsonov who has long been friends with his fellow Russian countryman.

Unfortunately the positive vibes that came with Lyubushkin's return to the team came to a crashing halt in his first game back with the Maple Leafs on Saturday night after he was crushed by New York Rangers enforcer Matt Rempe along the boards during the second period.

Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe was very critical of the hit from Rempe following the game, and unfortunately he was also able to confirm that Lyubushkin has in fact been injured. The Maple Leafs did not provide an official update on the defender during the game, but his absence from the bench during the entire third period had led many to believe that he had been injured on the hit from Rempe.

There has been no timeline provided for how long this injury may keep Lyubushkin out of action, and as is often the case with head injuries it may be too early to tell.