Defenceman John Klingberg‘s chances of playing the first game in Sweden on Friday are “low,” Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters on Wednesday.
Keefe said Klingberg isn’t ready to practise.
“He wasn’t ready to go today,” Keefe told reporters. “I’d put his chances of playing on Friday, I would put that as low right now, just given the fact he hasn’t skated since the game the other night. We were hoping to use this time, with the gap in between (games), to give him more time to heal but also to have some aggressive treatment with him that would really help (but) that has taken longer than thought.”
Keefe said that once he “gets over the hump,” the “hope” is that Klingberg will be feeling better. The coach added, “I don’t think the long flight did him any favours.”
Klingberg, a native of Gothenburg, Sweden, has zero goals and five assists in 14 games this season.
The Maple Leafs open the Global Series on Friday in Stockholm against the Detroit Red Wings. Game time is 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT, and can be seen on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+.