The Edmonton Oilers have been forced to deal with a slew of injuries as of late, and the laundry list got even longer during Thursday's 4-0 loss to the Florida Panthers.
Trent Frederic was injured late in the second period of the two-time Stanley Cup Finals rematch while forechecking, and although he was able to skate off on his own power, he didn't return to the game for the final frame.
Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch provided a disappointing update on Friday.
“Trent is out with an injury and I don't have a timeline,” the head coach told reporters, including Sportsnet's Gene Principe.
Although Frederic has underperformed in Edmonton, he's still brought a spirited and physical element to the bottom-six that will be difficult to replace. In his first full season in Alberta after signing an eight-year contract back in June, the 28-year-old has managed just four goals and six points over 67 games.
He's seeing around 11 minutes of ice time per game, but despite the low usage, is still second on the team in hits with 170. He now joins Mattias Janmark, Curtis Lazar, Colton Dach and Leon Draisaitl, who have all landed on LTIR within the last couple of weeks.
Obviously, Draisaitl is the most important absence, as the German superstar is fourth in league scoring with 97 points in 65 games. But the team will miss all of the injured players as they look to finish strong down the stretch.
After Thursday's defeat, the Oilers are 34-27-9 and second place in the Pacific Division. They have a five-point cushion on the Los Angeles Kings, who currently occupy the final wildcard berth in the Western Conference.
There's a bit of breathing room, but with only 12 games left in their regular-season — and the injuries starting to pile up — every single point is going to be critical over the next three weeks.
It's now a next-man-up mentality for the Oilers, and for Saturday night's clash against the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning, that will be winger Roby Jarventie, who was called up from AHL Bakersfield ahead of the tilt.
