For those Maple Leafs fans scoring at home, it's Chad Kilger and Boyd Devereaux out, and Ben Ondrus in.

Ondrus is the latest player recalled from Toronto's American Hockey League affiliate this week, following tough guy Kris Newbury, as fill-ins for the injury-ravaged Maple Leafs.

Maple Leafs' Ben Ondrus, right, will be called upon to provide some physical play against Carolina.
(Ian Barrett/Canadian Press)

Kilger did not accompany the NHL team to Carolina for Thursday's tilt against the Hurricanes (7 p.m. ET), while Devereaux suffered a slight tear in the muscle in his left wrist in Washington before last week's all-star break.

Forwards Alexei Ponikarovsky, Alex Steen and recent Marlies call-up Darryl Boyce remain sidelined with shoulder injuries.

"We've lost our top two left-wingers, so everyone else has to do a little more," Toronto coach Paul Maurice told reporters, referring to Ponikarovsky and Steen.

"If we look back to last year, we had a lot of injuries too. And, this year we've played games with beat-up guys. It has been a contributing factor [to the team's performances]."

Those on the mend include forward Mark Bell, who has begun off-ice workouts following surgery earlier this month to repair a fractured orbital bone (eye area) sustained in a fight with Pittsburgh's Ryan Malone on Jan. 3.

Defenceman Bryan McCabe is also back skating after breaking three bones in his left hand in a Dec. 15 game in Montreal. He's expected to return to the lineup within two weeks.

Fellow blue-liner Carlo Colaiacovo returned Tuesday after missing nine games with knee woes and was on the ice for both Leafs goals in a 3-2 loss to visiting St. Louis.

Another encouraging sign was the two-goal performance by the secondary scoring line of Darcy Tucker, Jason Blake and Matt Stajan.

The loss was the second straight for Toronto, which remains 14th in the 15-team Eastern Conference with a 20-24-8 record for 48 points. Six points and six teams separate the Leafs from the eighth and final playoff spot.

And as the losses mount, so do the trade rumours involving captain Mats Sundin, who has a no-trade clause and will be an unrestricted free agent on July 1. The NHL trade deadline is Feb. 26 at 3 p.m. ET.

Lining the press box at the Air Canada Centre on Tuesday were 17 scouts from 15 different teams, no doubt watching Sundin and perhaps others, including Blake and Tucker. The latter also has a no-movement clause in his contract.

'We'll sit down with Mats': Fletcher

"Of course we'll sit down with Mats eventually," said Leafs interim general manager Cliff Fletcher. "But it's not even Feb. 1 yet, it's very premature … I just want him to lead the way and see if we can win some hockey games."

Meanwhile, word out of Carolina is GM Jim Rutherford will be seeking a mobile defenceman before the trade deadline that can help on the power play.

Only Tampa Bay and Los Angeles (both 172 goals allowed) have been scored on more than the Hurricanes (171) this season. But unlike those teams, Carolina (25-24-4) leads its division, holding a three-point lead over Washington, which hosts Montreal on Thursday.

The Hurricanes have won three of their last four starts, and have given up two or fewer goals in each victory. The defence shone in Tuesday's 3-1 win over the New York Rangers.

Forward Sergei Samsonov had one of Carolina's goals to give him eight points in nine games since being acquired off re-entry waivers on Jan. 8 from Chicago.

The Hurricanes took the first two games of the season against Toronto, including a 7-1 beating on Oct. 9, but succumbed 5-4 on Jan. 15. They have won three of the past five meetings in Carolina.

With files from the Associated Press