This is not the news that the Toronto Maple Leafs and their fans wanted to ring the new year in with.

Team captain Auston Matthews, who has been hampered by an injury all season long for which he even traveled to Germany to seek treatment, sounded unsure whether he'd be able to put the injury behind him, via The New York Times.

“I don’t know. I hope so,” Matthews said. “That’s obviously the goal. It’s tricky with these things sometimes. It’s a physical sport, it’s a contact sport, so things happen out there sometimes that are out of your control. So I’m just trying to manage it as best as I can, and we can, and you just go from there.”

Matthews will not play on Thursday against the New York Islanders, marking the 15th game he's missed this season and the sixth straight.

Auston Matthews is in his first season as Maple Leafs captain

Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) looks on during the third period against the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center.
Brace Hemmelgarn-Imagn Images
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Matthews was named the captain of the Maple Leafs during the offseason, taking the role from John Tavares and becoming the first American-born captain in Leafs history.

The reigning Rocket Richard Trophy winner as the NHL's leading goal scorer last season with an astounding 69 tallies, Matthews isn't taking the responsibility of assuming Toronto's captaincy lightly, via NHL.com.

“I got chills, honestly,” Matthews said about being named captain. “I'm so honored and humbled since being drafted here eight years ago. You realize how special it is to play for the city of Toronto, to wear the Maple Leaf on your chest every single night. It just means the world to do that.

To have the support from Johnny, my teammates, our staff, ownership, my family, it just means the world to me. I look forward to continuing our journey to obviously get to the top of the mountain and win the Stanley Cup and bring it back to Toronto.”

So far this season, Matthews has 11 goals and 12 assists in 24 games played.