Just four games after his return from a back injury, Los Angeles Kings winger Viktor Arvidsson is back on the shelf. On Saturday, the Kings announced that Arvidsson has been placed on long-term injured reserve with a lower-body injury.
Arvidsson, 30, missed the first 50 games of the season while recovering from a back injury. The veteran made his 2023-24 season debut against the New Jersey Devils on Feb. 15, but he suffered a lower-body injury against the Columbus Blue Jackets just five days later.
Arvidsson recorded two assists in his four games, and he has been a source of offense for the Kings when healthy. In his first two seasons with Los Angeles, from 2021-2023, Arvidsson notched 46 goals and 62 assists in 143 games.
The Kings hoped that Arvidsson would provide a midseason boost to their forward group as they continue their playoff push. That’s no longer the case, and it may prompt general manager Rob Blake to look for some more help ahead of the NHL trade deadline.
According to PuckPedia, the Kings now have around $3.3 million in salary cap space now that Arvidsson is on LTIR. That will give them some flexibility to add more firepower if they want to load up for a playoff run.
KVSP