Winnipeg Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey is expected to miss extended time with the upper-body injury he sustained at the Milan Cortina Olympics, TSN reported Monday.
Morrissey departed Canada’s opener against Czechia on Feb. 12 and was shelved for the remainder of the tournament, including Sunday’s 2-1 overtime loss to the United States in the gold-medal game.
He was limited to 7:10 of ice time at the Olympics after previously missing last February’s 4 Nations Face-Off championship game due to illness. Canada beat the U.S. 3-2 in overtime to win that event in Boston.
Morrissey’s injury deprives the Jets, who return from the Olympic break against the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday, of a key playmaking defenseman and all-situations workhorse.
He is Winnipeg’s fourth-leading scorer (42 points in 56 games) and averages the 11th-most minutes in the league (24:37 per game).
“We want Josh in this game. He helps us with puck moving and everything he does, but in the end, if you’re not physically able to do it…” Canada head coach Jon Cooper said before the Olympic final. “When it comes to the flag, no one is getting in the way of it. If (players are) incapable of giving what they think is optimal effort, they don’t want to put the country in harm. They understand what we have here.”
Morrissey, 30, is in his 10th full season with the Jets, who drafted him with the No. 13 overall pick in 2013. He has 415 career points (90 goals, 325 assists) in 718 games.
Last season’s Presidents’ Trophy winner, Winnipeg has plunged to 13th in the Western Conference standings and is 11 points out of a playoff spot.
–Field Level Media
