John Klingberg, the power-play specialist and one of the more high-profile members of the Toronto Maple Leafs' free agent signings, was officially placed on long-term injured reserve on Nov. 23.
That decision came after the defenceman missed three consecutive games, two of which in his home country of Sweden, and said that he had hit "rock bottom" with his hip injury.
Now, with his $4.15-million cap hit cleared up, the Maple Leafs can better map out a recovery timeline for Klingberg which, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, should become clearer very soon.
"We know he's going to be out for 10 games and 24 days, but the question was whether or not he'd be able to return this year," Friedman reported on the "Saturday Headlines" segment of Hockey Night in Canada. "Klingberg is evaluating his options, whether they would be rehab or surgery, but I think sometime next week, we're going to have a clearer picture of what his timeline will be."
Klingberg underwent double hip surgery in 2014, ahead of his rookie season in the NHL.
The 31-year-old joined the Maple Leafs via free agency to provide offence from the blue line, but has struggled to get going in his 14 games, registering just five assists.
Selected 131st overall in the 2010 NHL Draft by the Dallas Stars, he remained with that organization for eight seasons before being traded to the Minnesota Wild before the deadline last season.
COMMENTS
When submitting content, please abide by our submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.