The Ducks will have a bit of extra help up front as they get set to take on Seattle Sunday. Lisa Dillman of the Orange County Register reports that center Derek Grant has been activated off injured reserve and will suit up against the Kraken. He’ll take the place of rookie winger Pavol Regenda.
The 32-year-old has been out for a little over three weeks due to an upper-body injury. Prior to sustaining it, Grant had played in 11 games, picking up a goal and an assist while logging heavy minutes shorthanded; his 2:39 of ice time per game in that situation is second among Anaheim forwards behind only Jakob Silfverberg.
A pending unrestricted free agent, Grant is the type of depth forward that tends to be moved closer to the trade deadline as someone that can kill penalties, play both down the middle and on the wing, and is affordable on the cap (he carries a $1.5M AAV). With the Ducks appearing to be well on the path towards selling over the next few months, Grant figures to be on the move at some point but he’ll give Anaheim a boost in the bottom six in the meantime now that he’s healthy.
It’s not all good news on the injury front for the Ducks, however, as Dillman also notes that blueliner John Klingberg will miss his second straight game due to a lower-body injury. It has been a tough start to the season for the veteran who was looking to rebuild some value after not getting the type of contract he was seeking in free agency last summer. Instead, he has just one goal in 20 games and will be out of the lineup a little longer.
Meanwhile, the team announced that winger Max Comtois has been placed on injured reserve. He has been out for the last two weeks due to a lower-body injury which allows Anaheim to backdate the placement. Accordingly, he’ll be eligible to be activated as soon as he’s healthy. Comtois has four goals in 15 games so far this season.
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