Jets Lose Mark Stuart Until February With Lower-Body Injury
Winnipeg Jets defenseman Mark Stuart has been ruled out until February with a lower-body injury.
If the Jets keep losing defensemen at this rate, I may be able to actually live my dream of playing in the NHL.
The Winnipeg Jets lost another defenseman Thursday, when the team announced that veteran blue-liner Mark Stuart will be sidelined until at least February with a lower-body injury. Stuart is the fourth Winnipeg defenseman to be sidelined with an injury for an extended period.
Stuart joins the likes of Jacob Trouba, who, like Stuart, won’t be back until February. Fellow defensemen Tobias Entrom and Zach Bogosian are both out until mid to late January with lower-body injuries.
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Stuart is by no means easy to replace. Not only is his veteran presence and leadership of instrumental importance, but he also eats up a good chunk of valuable minutes. The 30 year old has played in all 32 games so far this season, registering 1 goal and 8 assists for 9 points and averaging just under 20 minutes of ice time per game. Obviously, his minutes were even more valuable with the injuries they have on defense.
The Jets are now looking at a top six that will include the likes of Dustin Byugflien, Adam Pardy, Paul Postma, Ben Chiarot, Grant Clitsome, and most likely to be called up Julien Brouillette. The latter of the six, Julien, only having 10 games of NHL experience under his belt and none with the Jets.
It seems more and more likely that general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff will need to make a move of some sorts to help fill the void on defense. Trade rumors involving Evander Kane have been humming around since the off-season. If any teams in the NHL are interested in Evander Kane and have a surplus of blue-liners, now may be the time to send Winnipeg an offer.