Joe Thornton already placed on injured reserve, no timetable for return

The health of Joe Thornton was a question all offseason, and now he’s been placed on injured reserve on after just the second game of the season. Whether it’s serious or not is another matter.

It’s an all in season for the San Jose Sharks, and they need everybody they can get in franchises quest to capture their first Stanley Cup, but they need to be without Joe Thornton once again for a bit.

Sharks franchise center Joe Thornton has been placed on injured reserve after experiencing swelling surgically repaired knee after the Sharks 3-2 overtime win over the Los Angeles Kings on Friday night. Thornton flew back to San Jose and will not be with the team for their next four games on the road on the east coast, starting in Philadelphia on Tuesday.

Center Dylan Gambrell has been called up from the AHL in the meantime while Thornton is out.

According to Sharks head coach Pete DeBoer, Thornton went on injured reserve as a precaution. The earliest that Thornton could play again after being placed on IR would be next Sunday in New Jersey against the Devils, but San Jose does not have a timetable for Thornton’s return at moment.

“He had a little bit of swelling after the last game, and rather than continue on the road and risk anything with it, we’re going to take the safe route and get him home and get it looked at,” Pete DeBoer said about Thornton.

The 39-year-old Joe Thornton suffered through injuries for a strong majority of last season, and was only able to dress for 47 regular-season games, and did not participate in the Sharks playoff run to the second round. Thornton first tore the MCL in his left knee on Apr. 2, 2017, and managed to play for a couple games of the Sharks first round loss to the Edmonton Oilers.

Then, after rejoining the team next season once he recovered from surgery, Thornton tore the MCL in his right knee just a few month later. He would not return for the season and postseason, and now it’s acting up again which will cause him to miss time again this season.

With his knee injury from last year seemingly re-aggravated, how much does Joe Thornton have left in the tank? Even if this isn’t serious and just a precaution, he’s had both MCLs in both knees torn in the last two years, and one still healing at the moment. It’s a wonder that he can still skate under those conditions at his age, but how longer can he do it? No matter what, is this the last ride for Jumbo Joe?

The Sharks are making the right call here with being cautious, because one more tweak could be the end of the 21-year career of Joe Thornton. The Sharks cannot afford this year, not when they’re going all in at the Stanley Cup, and not while they’re still weak at center.