San Jose Sharks place defenseman on injured reserve

Defenseman Radim Simek has been placed on injured reserve by the San Jose Sharks and will miss at least the next week.

Simek, 28, had to leave Saturday’s game with the Vegas Golden Knights at SAP Center after he was injured early in the second period.

Simek was first hit by Golden Knights forward Jonathan Marchessault against the end boards. Shortly after, with the puck in the corner to the left of goalie Martin Jones, Simek — still feeling the effects of the first hit — was cross-checked by Marchessault in the rib area. Simek was able to get to the Sharks’ bench but immediately went to the locker room.

Before that sequence, Simek had upended Golden Knights forward Reilly Smith with a check in the Sharks’ corner as the two were racing to retrieve the puck. The Sharks lost the game 3-1.

The severity of Simek’s injury hasn’t yet been made public. The Sharks play the Anaheim Ducks on Monday at SAP Center and travel to play the St. Louis Blues on Thursday and Saturday.

Marchessault with a hit on Simek that Hedican calls suspendible. #SJSharks | #VegasBorn pic.twitter.com/gmPJfUfkTQ

— TEAL TOWN USA – A San Jose Sharks Podcast (@TEALTOWNUSA) February 13, 2021

Simek could be replaced in the lineup by either Fredrik Claesson and Jacob Middleton, who are also left-shot defensemen, or Nicolas Meloche, who is also on the roster and is a right shot.

Claesson, 28, has the most NHL experience with 155 games but has yet to play in a game this season after he was signed as a free agent by the Sharks last month.

When Simek missed the Sharks’ first two games this season with knee discomfort, Meloche and Middleton each played one game in his absence.

Entering Saturday, Simek had been averaging 14:23 minutes of ice time per game this season. His playing time, though, had increased as he had been playing as Erik Karlsson’s defense partner in recent games.

Karlsson was also injured Saturday as he missed the last 11 minutes with a lower body injury, but there was no update on his health Sunday, although he was not placed on IR.