"Obviously he's not in a position to play so we have got to be extra cautious with him and that's what we're doing," Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock said of the 29-year-old goalie prior to a 4-0 loss to the New York Islanders at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday.
On Monday, Andersen worked out on ice with Maple Leafs goaltending coach Steve Briere and Babcock said he will do so again on Tuesday. Babcock did not say when Andersen will practice with his teammates or which goalie starts in Toronto's next game against the Minnesota Wild on Thursday (2 p.m. ET; SNO, FS-N, FS-WI, NHL.TV).
Andersen is 20-9-1 with a 2.50 goals-against average and .923 save percentage in 30 games and was second in the NHL with 20 wins, one behind Vegas Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, when he got hurt.
Backup Garret Sparks made 24 saves against the Islanders. Sparks is 6-2-1 with a 3.01 GAA and .905 save percentage in 10 games (nine starts) for the Maple Leafs.
"Well, we've dealt with injuries and guys being out of the lineup all year so far," Maple Leafs center John Tavares said. "Obviously [Andersen has] been a huge key to our success, there's no doubt about that. It's a great opportunity for Sparks to step up and continue to play the way he is playing and for us as a group to challenge ourselves to move forward and play well and know that we have to continue to play well defensively."
The Maple Leafs recalled goalie Kasimir Kaskisuo on an emergency basis from Toronto of the American Hockey League on Saturday. He is 3-5-1 with a 4.12 GAA and .866 save percentage in 11 AHL games this season and backed up Sparks against the Islanders.
Toronto acquired goalie Michael Hutchinson on Saturday in a trade with the Florida Panthers for a fifth-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft.
The 28-year-old is 1-1-2 with a 4.17 GAA and .839 save percentage in four games (three starts) with the Panthers this season. He's is 2-3-2 with a 3.33 GAA and .906 save percentage in eight games with Springfield of the AHL.
The Maple Leafs (26-11-2) are in second place in the Atlantic Division, eight points behind the first-place Tampa Bay Lightning.
NHL.com correspondent Dave McCarthy contributed to this report
