Erik Karlsson will be out longer than initially expected.
The Sharks defenseman did not accompany the team to St. Louis and will miss at least the next two games. The Sharks confirmed that Karlsson is dealing with a groin injury suffered Saturday against the Vegas Golden Knights.
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SIGN UP HERE Karlsson's status beyond the next two games is up in the air. After their consecutive games in St. Louis, the Sharks host the Minnesota Wild on Monday at SAP Center.
“I don’t want to forecast if he’s going to be ready to go by [Monday],” Boughner told reporters Thursday (h/t San Jose Mercury News). “But with what he has, it’s an injury that you can play through, but it’s just going to get worse. Long-term, we need to have our best lineup in, especially when we get back home. So, trying to do the smart thing and the right thing.”
While groin injuries can last a while, Boughner is not concerned that Karlsson will miss a long period of time.
"We’ve had tests and MRIs and things like that. I think that it’s just it’s more of a day-to-day kind of thing,” Boughner said.
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Karlsson told reporters before practice Wednesday that his injury had been "lingering" and he didn't want to make it worse.
"It's something that's been lingering for a while, unfortunately in the Vegas game it progressively got worse ... Hopefully, it's not going to stick with me, it's one of those unfortunate things," Karlsson said.
Karlsson briefly skated Wednesday during practice with the team before leaving the ice quickly, a sign that his injury clearly was still affecting him.
In 13 games so far this season, Karlsson has four assists and has yet to score.
