While the Blue Jackets weren’t expecting to be without defenseman Ryan Murray for too long after he suffered a back injury in late November, he still has yet to play and Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that it may be a while yet before he returns. He tried to take part in practice on Wednesday but made it through just one drill before leaving the ice which is never a good sign.
Not only is that an important loss that Columbus will continue to have to work through but this may also have implications on what happens with Jack Johnson. While he’s not denying his trade request, the Blue Jackets may be in tough to grant it if it looks like Murray won’t be back for a while yet. At any rate, it wouldn’t be surprising to see GM Jarmo Kekalainen on the look for defensive depth between now and the trade deadline.
Other injury notes from around the league:
- Florida is getting closer to have their starting goaltender back in the fold. Head coach Bob Boughner told Jameson Olive of the Panthers’ team site that Roberto Luongo has “turned a corner” in his rehab from a lower-body injury sustained back on December 4th. The hope is that he will be able to skate with the team in a practice in the coming days and work towards getting back into the lineup from there. Prior to the injury, Luongo was off to a strong start to his season, posting a .928 SV% (a mark that would equal the second highest of his career) in 15 appearances.
- The Kings announced that they have activated defenseman Jake Muzzin off injured reserve. He had missed the last three games due to an upper-body injury and is expected to be in the lineup tonight against Pittsburgh. Muzzin has been a key part of the back end in Los Angeles this season, logging 22:38 per night while picking up 23 points in 41 games.
- The Rangers revealed (Twitter link) that defenseman Marc Staal has been ruled out for at least the next two games as a result of the hip flexor he sustained on Tuesday. Head coach Alain Vigneault stated that if he’s likely to be out longer than through the weekend, they will likely bring up someone from the AHL at that time.