Lightning’s Declan Carlile out 4-5 weeks with lower-body injury
The Tampa Bay Lightning look to be without one of their young defenseman for approximately the rest of the regular season, if not a bit longer.
On Saturday, the team announced that Declan Carlile is expected to miss the next four to five weeks with a lower-body injury.
Injury update: The @TBLightning announce that defenseman Declan Carlile is out 4-5 weeks with a lower-body injury. #GoBolts
With Tampa Bay’s final regular season game scheduled for April 15th, Carlile’s injury timeline would have him return at the tail end of the regular season or early on in the postseason.
Carlile, 25, last played in the Lightning’s 4-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday. It’s unclear exactly when or how he suffered the injury.
In 38 games played for Tampa Bay this season, the Hartland, Michigan native has a goal and two assists for three points, while averaging about 14 and a half minutes of ice time. He has also played 16 games for the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch this season, where he’s notched two goals and nine assists for 11 points.
After a three-year career at Merrimack College, Carlile signed with the Lightning as an undrafted free agent in March of 2022. He has played the bulk of his professional career with Syracuse, having only appeared in four NHL games prior to this season.
Carlile is in the final season of a two-year, $1.55 million contract, and is set to become a Group 6 unrestricted free agent this upcoming offseason.
Tampa Bay is currently in second place in the Atlantic Division, despite having the best goal differential in the division by a margin of 17. They are poised the make the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season, and are looking to capture their fourth Stanley Cup championship in franchise history.
After facing the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday, the Lightning will begin a four-game road trip when visit the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday.