Jets captain Blake Wheeler out weeks with lower-body injury, coach says
Field Level Media | Posted: December 13, 2021 9:18 PM | Last Updated: December 13, 2021
Further evaluation scheduled; forward has 17 points in 22 games this season
Winnipeg Jets captain Blake Wheeler will be sidelined multiple weeks with a lower-body injury, coach Paul Maurice confirmed Monday.
The 35-year-old forward was hurt in the third period of Friday night's 4-3 shootout loss at Vancouver. He clutched his right leg after a collision with teammate Nathan Beaulieu and Canucks forward Vasily Podkolzin.
Wheeler scored his first goal of the season in the first period of that game and added two assists, hiking his season total to 17 points in 22 games.
Maurice said Wheeler will undergo more tests before the team determines a timeline for his return.
Wheeler has 280 goals, 824 points and 673 penalty minutes in 1,003 NHL regular-season games with the Boston Bruins (2008-11), Atlanta Thrashers (2011) and Jets.