Ottawa Senators shut down Kyle Turris indefinitely with ankle injury

The Ottawa Senators have announced that they have shut down center Kyle Turris indefinitely due to his high ankle sprain 

The Ottawa Senators have suffered a huge blow to their dwindling playoff chances as they have announced that center Kyle Turris will be shut down indefinitely due to his high ankle sprain. Ottawa loses their first line center and one of their most productive players.

Kyle Turris is Ottawa’s sixth leading scorer this season with 30 points (13 goals and 17 assists) in 57 games. He ranks seventh on the team in goals and sixth on the team in assists. Turris has been struggling as of late with no points in his last 14 games. His pointless streak has lasted over a month. This ankle injury certainly puts things in context as Turris was clearly not himself and battling some kind of injury. A high ankle sprain certainly explains why Turris was not as explosive and far less effective than he usually is.

Without Turris, expect center Mika Zibanejad to take over Turris’s spot on the first line. Center Zack Smith should also see an increase in ice time as he should slot in as the second line center. Zibanejad has 14 goals and 25 assists for 39 points this season while Smith has 16 goals and six assists for 22 points. Ottawa’s center depth was a bit lacking even before Turris’s injury, so they’ll have to overcome that hurdle if they want to make another Cinderella run at the playoffs like they did last season.