The Toronto Maple Leafs may have suffered an injury blow as forward the team saw Calle Jarnkrok injured during a practice drill on Friday. Head coach Sheldon Keefe said he doesn’t know the extent of the injury at this time. In other news, centre Bobby McMann was also placed on injured reserve.
Calle Jarnkrok slams his glove in frustration after he leaves practice early after blocking a point shot in a practice drill. pic.twitter.com/777kbGkyMc
— David Alter (@dalter) January 26, 2024
Calle Jarnkrok Injured at Practice
Jarnkrok left Friday’s practice and slammed his gloves down in frustration in a video shared on social media by reporter David Alter. Jarnkrok left practice after blocking a shot. The Swedish forward has played for the Nashville Predators, Seattle Kraken, Calgary Flames and Maple Leafs in his 11-year NHL career. This season Jarnkrok has 10 goals and nine assists for 19 points in 46 games this season. He has a relative Corsi of 49.9 and a relative Corsi of -1.9.
The 32-year-old has 136 goals and 163 assists for 299 points in 693 career games. He spent over 500 games with the Predators before moving onto the Kraken in the 2021-22 season. The Detroit Red Wings selected the Gavle, Sweden native in the second round, 51st overall of the 2010 NHL Draft.
Jarnkrok has represented his native Sweden at the international level. He’s won a gold medal at the 2013 IIHF World Championships and a bronze medal in the 2014 tournament.
What the Injury Means
Losing a veteran like Jarnkrok is a big injury blow. He’s a very key part of the Maple Leafs’ bottom six and can play multiple forward positions if needed. Keefe trusts Jarnkrok a lot when it comes to the defensive end. The Leafs will have to scramble and make some lineup adjustments when they face the Winnipeg Jets.
Tyler Bertuzzi did return to practice and will likely draw back into the lineup. However, the loss of Jarnkrok will hurt because the veteran does plenty of the little things for the club. For Toronto’s sake, it hopes the injury isn’t long term.
Main photo by: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
