Seattle will not finish the first month of the regular season with their opening night defensive corps.
Monday evening, the Kraken placed defenseman Vince Dunn on LTIR retroactive to Oct. 17 and subsequently recalled Cale Fleury from the Coachella Valley Firebirds. Players eligible for LTIR must be expected to miss at least 10 games and 24 days of the season, making Nov. 12 versus the Columbus Blue Jackets the earliest he could return to action.
Health has not been kind to Dunn as of late. Seattle’s top offensive defenseman missed the third game of the season– the second half of a back-to-back in Dallas– with an upper-body injury, although his current ailment does not appear to be related.
Last Thursday versus the Philadelphia Flyers, Dunn tripped on an opponent’s stick after jumping to grab a puck out of the air. While he didn’t collide with the boards or the other player, the fall was awkward enough to keep him from playing the final five minutes of the first period. He played 8:26 in the second but missed the entirety of the third, a decision head coach Dan Bylsma called a “precautionary” one with Dunn a “little banged up.”
Saturday morning, Bylsma officially designated Dunn’s injury as “mid-body” and ruled him out against the Calgary Flames after the defenseman missed practice on Friday– Josh Mahura took his place on the first pair alongside Adam Larsson for the Kraken’s 2-1 OT win. Dunn did not practice with the team again on Monday.
Through four games this season, Dunn averaged 18:49 a night and recorded three points. He missed the last seven games of the 2023-24 season due to an upper-body injury.