SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks will have to go without Mackenzie Blackwood for at least the next week after they placed the goalie on injured reserve Wednesday with a lower-body ailment.
Blackwood was injured Tuesday night in the Sharks’ game against the New Jersey Devils, as left the ice late in the first period after he made a save. Blackwood did not return to the game as the Sharks were blasted 7-2 by the Devils at SAP Center.
The severity of the injury was not immediately known but Blackwood will have to miss the next three games, at least, as the Sharks (15-37-5) host the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday night and travel to face the Dallas Stars on Saturday and the Minnesota Wild on Sunday.
The Sharks recalled Magnus Chrona from the Barracuda to take Blackwood’s spot on the roster. He’ll tandem for the time being with Kaapo Kahkonen, who entered Tuesday’s game after Blackwood’s injury and stopped 24 of 31 shots, as the Sharks lost by five goals or more for the seventh time this season.
Blackwood has played in 35 games this season and has a 9-18-3 record with a .899 save percentage and a 3.48 goals-against average.
Aside from an illness that kept him out of action for a week after Christmas, Blackwood, who struggled with injuries earlier in his NHL career, has been healthy and available for the Sharks all season.
Sharks general manager Mike Grier acquired Blackwood from the Devils last June for a 2023 sixth-round draft pick and subsequently signed him to a two-year, $4.7 million contract.
Getting a fresh start and incorporating more Pilates and core muscle work into his offseason routine, Blackwood had been able to stay healthy, as his workload this season was the most he’s had since 2020-2021 when he went 14-17-4 for the Devils.
“When I first got hurt in New Jersey, I never really treated it properly in terms of waiting until I was fully healthy to start trying to play and play a lot again, so it just kind of compiled,” Blackwood said earlier this week.
“I did my ankle, and then I did my groin and then I did my knee on the other side, just because everything was just overworking each other. So I never really waited long enough for my body to be ready to handle a full 80-game workload.
“After not playing a lot last year at the end, having a good summer of rehab, and changing my training a little bit. It’s helped me feel good again.”
At the behest of some friends, Blackwood adjusted his offseason regimen.
“A lot of people recommended (Pilates) to me, so finally got through to me and my stubbornness,” Blackwood said. “I said ‘You know what, sure. I’ll try it out this summer.’ And I did it like three, four days a week and it was good. I just added it on top of my regular training.”
Kahkonen, a pending unrestricted free agent who could be on the move before the March 8 NHL trade deadline, might now have to take on a greater workload as the Sharks head into a busy month of March.
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After this weekend’s back-to-back games, the Sharks play 13 times in 26 days, with one more back-to-back on March 16 and 17 when they play Columbus and Chicago, respectively, as part of a five-game, eight-day road trip.
Kahkonen has a 6-18-2 record with a respectable .901 save percentage in 28 games this season, and his underlying numbers are impressive. Among the 41 goalies who have played at least 25 games this season, Kahkonen, per moneypuck.com, is tops with a .853 save percentage on high-danger unblocked shot attempts.
Please check back for updates to this developing story.