The San Jose Sharks placed defenseman Jan Rutta (lower body) on injured reserve Sunday and recalled defenseman Jack Thompson from the Barracuda.
The 34-year-old Rutta, who has been bothered recently by the injury and did not play in Saturday’s 7-2 loss to the Florida Panthers, will have to miss Monday’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins and Thursday’s road game against the Seattle Kraken.
Rutta is eligible to return for the Sharks’ Feb. 4 game against the Montreal Canadiens.
Saturday’s game was the first Rutta, a pending unrestricted free agent, has missed this season.
Thompson, 22, has five points in 14 games with the Sharks this season. His most recent game came on Dec. 5 against the Tampa Bay Lightning before he was reassigned to the AHL. Thompson has two goals and seven assists in 17 games with the Barracuda this season.
The Sharks now have six players on IR, tied with the Toronto Maple Leafs for the most in the league.
Also on IR are forwards Nico Sturm (lower body), Klim Kostin (lower body), Ty Dellandrea (upper body), Logan Couture (osteitis pubis), and goalie Vitek Vanecek (fractured cheekbone). Of that group, Vanecek appears closest to a return, as he has been skating with the team in recent days.
The Sharks (14-32-6) enter Monday on a six-game losing streak and are in last place in the NHL’s overall standings with 34 points.
Source: Paradise Post
