The Ottawa Senators acquired young star forward William Eklund from the San Jose Sharks this offseason after trading former captain Brady Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers. The hope is that Eklund will be a strong replacement for Tkachuk in the Senators' top six. However, that thought can be put on pause for now, as Eklund has been hit with some bad injury news.
Senators head coach Travis Green announced on Friday that Eklund is going to be out for an extended period of time due to an ankle injury, as reported by Sportsnet. Green making this announcement comes after Eklund exited the Senators' most recent game against the Philadelphia Flyers. After being checked into the boards by Flyers defenseman Simon Benoit, Eklund stayed down on the ice in clear pain.
Benoit's hit on Eklund was not dirty in the slightest. Unfortunately, Eklund's foot collided awkwardly with the boards, which led to his injury. The Senators will now be forced to adjust without having Eklund in the lineup.
Him missing time is undoubtedly bad news for Ottawa, as he is a key part of their forward group and a very good NHL player. Eklund has appeared in four games this season for Ottawa, where he has recorded one goal and one assist. This is after he had 15 goals and 53 points in 78 games for the Sharks during this past season.
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