The Anaheim Ducks have announced that defenseman John Klingberg is out with a lower-body injury. There was no word on whether his status was considered day-to-day or something longer, but the team noted that Nathan Beaulieu would be drawing into the lineup in Klingberg’s place.
While this development won’t have any impact on the Ducks’ long-gone playoff hopes, it could have an effect on the trade deadline. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman notes that this is not an instance of a team holding a player out of the lineup for trade-related reasons, as we have seen teams do with other blueliners such as Jakob Chychrun and Vladislav Gavrikov.
While Klingberg, 30, has had a nightmarish season in Anaheim (22 points in 48 games, down in scoring pace from 47 in 74 last season) he’s still a well-regarded offensive defenseman. Just last summer, he earned a one-year, $7M deal, and it’s likely that there would be teams interested in acquiring him at the deadline. The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta links Klingberg with the Edmonton Oilers’ search for defensive help at the deadline, and it’s likely that there would be more than just Edmonton looking to add him to their team. Assuming that’s the case, interested teams will likely want to monitor his health status closely due to this news.
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