Just as the Boston Bruins' beleaguered defense was starting to get healthier, it has suffered another blow.
Bruins coach Marco Sturm told media in Seattle on Monday that Hampus Lindholm is now out with an injury and that "it's not going to be a day-to-day thing."
"I think it's hopefully not too long, but he's definitely going to be out for a little bit," Sturm said.
Sturm did not disclose the nature of Lindholm's injury, or when it happened. Lindholm took regular shifts through the end of Saturday's 3-2 overtime win in Vancouver, with his 22:47 time on ice ranking second on the team behind only Charlie McAvoy.
It's been an up-and-down season for Lindholm, but he had played well recently on a new-look second pairing with Jonathan Aspirot, who just returned from injury himself last week. In the 50:34 those two had played together at 5-on-5, the Bruins had outscored opponents 2-0 and had an expected goals share of 54%.
Lindholm also missed eight games earlier this season with a lower-body injury that the team said was unrelated to the fractured kneecap that cost him 65 games last year.
Lindholm also suffered some personal disappointment earlier this week when he was left off Sweden's Olympic team. If this new injury costs him a significant amount of time this month, he also may not get a chance to state his case for being the next man up in the event of injury. The Bruins' last game before the break is Feb. 4, with the Olympic tournament starting on Feb. 11 in Milan, Italy.
While it's not a 1-for-1 replacement for Lindholm, the Bruins are at least on the verge of getting another defenseman back, as Sturm said Monday that Henri Jokiharju could return as early as Tuesday night in Seattle. Jokiharju, who was named to Finland's Olympic team this week, has been out since Nov. 28 due to injury.
Sturm also said that forward Tanner Jeannot could return Tuesday night after missing the last four games with an undisclosed injury.
Sturm said Lindholm will undergo further testing when the Bruins return to Boston later this week to determine the next steps.
UPDATE: Sturm clarified Tuesday night that Lindholm is somewhere between day-to-day and week-to-week.
"It's not a big concern," he said.
Lindholm is out through Saturday after being placed on injured reserve, but it sounds like it might not be much longer than that.