Defenseman Timothy Liljegren has an upper-body injury and will miss Monday’s game against the streaking Winnipeg Jets as the San Jose Sharks continue their season-long seven-game road trip.
Liljegren left Sunday’s game against the Calgary Flames after he was injured midway through the second period. Until then, Liljegren, paired with Mario Ferraro, had six shot attempts and was credited with one block in 11:21 of ice time.
Liljegren was being evaluated Monday, Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said. After Monday’s game, the Sharks next play on Thursday against the Montreal Canadiens. It remains unclear whether Liljegren will have to go on injured reserve and if the Sharks need to recall another defenseman from the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda.
“We’ll talk this afternoon,” Warsofsky said about potentially recalling another defenseman.
Marc-Edouard Vlasic will take Liljegren’s spot in the Sharks’ lineup. He will be paired with rookie Shakir Mukhamadullin, who will play on his right side, as the Sharks (15-36-7) look to snap a six-game road losing streak that dates back to Jan. 14. The Jets, though, have won nine straight games and enter Monday in first place in the Western Conference with a 40-14-3 record.
Jake Walman and Henry Thrun will remain the Sharks’ top defense pair, and Ferraro will play with Jack Thompson on the second pair.
Acquired by the Sharks in October in the trade that sent defenseman Matt Benning and two draft picks to the Toronto Maple Leafs, Liljegren has nine points and is averaging 18:04 in ice time in 44 games with San Jose.
Vlasic missed the first half of the season with an upper-body injury and has played in just seven games, all of which came in January. He has two assists this season, averaging just under 15 minutes in ice time per game.
INJURY UPDATE: Warsofsky added that Monday was “a big day” for winger Nikolai Kovalenko regarding whether he could join the Sharks later this week. Kovalenko, who hasn’t played since Jan. 30 with an upper body ailment, has been skating on his own recently and is still in San Jose.
Since being acquired by the Sharks in December in the trade that sent Mackenzie Blackwood and Givani Smith to the Colorado Avalanche, Kovalenko has one goal and seven assists in 17 games. He is averaging 12:10 in ice time per game.
Kovalenko has been on IR since Feb. 6, and the Sharks will have to create a roster spot for him once he’s cleared to play again.
