Another day, another injured Canucks defenseman.
This time, it’s Ben Hutton, who’s expected to be out “for a bit” after missing Saturday’s 3-1 loss in Calgary with an upper-body injury (reportedly a hand injury).
The Canucks actually had to play with just five defenseman on Saturday, as Chris Tanev was also out with an injury. But Tanev, unlike Hutton, will travel with the team to Nashville, where Vancouver will start a two-game road trip Tuesday. The second stop is Thursday in Philadelphia.
It remains to be seen which six d-men will dress against the Predators. Andrey Pedan is expected to be recalled from AHL Utica. He could play if Tanev still can’t.
Also of note, Nikita Tryamkin, one of the five d-men who played Saturday, seemed to hurt his shoulder on a big hit from Micheal Ferland. But Tryamkin only left the game for a short time, and he ended up logging 21:59 of ice time.
Tryamkin to the #Canucks room, leaving the #Canucks with four defencemen... pic.twitter.com/ISfn6OwxKh
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) January 8, 2017
Prior to the Hutton injury, the Canucks already had two defensemen, Erik Gudbranson and Philip Larsen, on injured reserve.
Hutton may soon be placed on IR himself. The 23-year-old has four goals and seven assists in 41 games and has averaged 20:59 of ice time.
Injuries have forced Vancouver to dress nine different defensemen this season. Only Luca Sbisa has played all 42 games.
Related: The Canucks have a big decision to make with Erik Gudbranson