Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Pavel Kubina will spend at least a month watching his new teammates — from the press box.

Kubina, 29, suffered a strained medial collateral ligament in his left knee during a collision with forward Todd Bertuzzi during Monday's 2-1 shootout win over the Florida Panthers.

Pavel Kubina stayed relatively injury-free last season, playing 76 games for the Tampa Bay Lightning.
(Dave Sandford/Getty Images)

While Kubina won't require surgery, he'll be out of the Leafs' lineup for the next four to six weeks.

"We certainly are hoping for the best," Toronto general manager John Ferguson told the Toronto Star.

The Maple Leafs signed Kubina to a four-year, $20-million US free-agent contract over the summer and hoped he would give overworked blue-liners Tomas Kaberle and Bryan McCabe a breather.

Kubina is the latest in a lengthy list of injured Toronto defencemen, joining Brendan Bell (foot), Carlo Colaiacovo (head), Staffan Kronwall (ankle) and Andrew Wozniewski (shoulder).

Wade Belak will shift from forward to defence in Kubina's absence.

Kubina has one assist and a plus-3 rating in three games for the Maple Leafs.

He played 76 games for the Tampa Bay Lightning last season, posting five goals and a career-high 38 points.

Kubina has 65 goals and 210 points in 534 NHL games since being drafted in the seventh round — 179th overall — by Tampa Bay in 1996. 

He helped the Lightning win their only Stanley Cup in 2004.

With files from the Canadian Press