One of the best teams in the Eastern Conference is going to be without one of their veteran defenseman for some time.
On Thursday, Boston Bruins’ general manager Don Sweeney announced that the team has placed Derek Forbort on long-term injured reserve.
The team also recalled Mason Lohrei from their American Hockey League affiliate, the Providence Bruins.
Earlier in the season, Forbort had been allegedly playing with a lower-body injury that, according to head coach Jim Montgomery, had been nagging him since training camp. The 31-year-old missed three games in early November due to the injury.
He played in Boston’s latest game, a 3-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets this past Sunday.
With the move to LTIR retroactive to Dec. 7, Forbort will be unavailable to play until the B’s New Year’s Eve matchup with the Detroit Red Wings.
The move raised the Bruins’ LTI salary pool to $4 million, with 22 players on the active roster. The team now has $2,787,500 in usable cap space.
Forbort had multiple injuries that has kept him out for a number of games last season. A finger injury, that required surgery, held the former Los Angeles King out for 11 games in November. Then, in March, Forbort suffered a lower-body injury, leading him to miss the rest of the regular season.
Since the beginning of the 2022-23 campaign, Forbort has played just 74 games, including all seven of Boston’s games against the Florida Panthers in last year’s playoffs. He has totaled 17 points over that span.
Lohrei played 10 games in Boston this season before getting sent down to Providence right after Thanksgiving. The former Ohio State Buckeye scored a goal and three assists during his first stint in the NHL.
The Bruins are currently are tied with the New York Rangers for the top spot in the East with 37 points. Boston leads the Florida Panthers in the Atlantic Division by five points.
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