"That's a diarrhea walk" "Traded": NHL fans left speculating as Auston Matthews leaves Maple Leafs practice early

On Tuesday, Auston Matthews was filmed leaving the ice and heading to the locker room prior to the Maple Leafs' preseason rematch with the Ottawa Senators. The footage of the newly-minted captain leaving the ice was filmed by TSN's Mark Masters, who posted it on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Along with the video, Masters said that it's unclear why Matthews left practice early and indicated that there were no obvious issues.

While Auston Matthews wasn't expected to play in Tuesday's rematch with the Ottawa Senators, news of the situation was quick to circulate among the NHL community as worried fans wondered what was going on.

While some expressed concern for Matthews, others were quick to chime in with jokes:

"That's a diarrhea walk if I ever saw one," a fan said.

"Traded" - a fan added.

"Mark I need you to get down there and find him on the toilet if you have to! Please find out if Papi is okay," one fan wrote.

Others kept the jokes coming:

"Auston right after on the locker room toilet browsing through Twitter reading this tweet …" a fan said.

"What if bro needed to poop really bad or something," another added.

"He had to check the NHL 25 Soundtrack when he heard it was released," one fan said.

"Just an upper-body thing," - Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube gives vague update on Auston Matthews following viral video from practice

After Auston Matthews left the ice during Tuesday's practice, Mitch Marner wound up getting moved to the center position in his absence. While plenty of fans joked that Matthews simply may have needed to use the bathroom, he didn't return to the ice for the remainder of the skate.

Following the footage of Matthews leaving the ice, media members asked coach Craig Berube for an update on the situation during the post-practice media scrum.

Berube provided a vague update on Matthews:

"Just an upper-body thing. It's not serious. He should be fine."

So far, it's unclear what sort of an upper-body injury Matthews is dealing with. However, given that he wasn't expected to play in Tuesday's game against the Senators, he shouldn't be sidelined for the team's regular-season opener on Oct. 9 against the Montreal Canadiens.

With the Maple Leafs eager to build on the momentum from last season, Auston Matthews' status will likely be one of the biggest storylines in the weeks to come. After finishing the 2023-24 regular season third in the Atlantic Division (46-26-10), the team was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

Now, with Matthews as the captain, anticipation is at an all-time high once again as Maple Leafs fans anxiously look for their first title since the 1966-67 season.