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Coyotes F Liam O’Brien battling upper-body injury, placed on IR

Originally posted on Burn City Sports | By Alec Cipollini | Last updated Feb 16, 2024 1:15 PM ET

Originally thought of as an injury that would be a “day-to-day” situation, Arizona Coyotes forward Liam O’Brien will now be out for an extended period of time.

According to the team’s Public Relations X (formerly Twitter) account, O’Brien has been placed on Injured Reserve with an upper-body injury.

ROSTER/INJURY UPDATES

Coyotes goaltender Connor Ingram is listed as day-to-day (lower-body)

The Coyotes have recalled goaltender Matt Villalta from the Tucson Roadrunners (AHL) on an emergency basis

The Coyotes have also placed forward Liam O'Brien (upper-body) on IR…

— Arizona Coyotes PR (@AZCoyotesPR) February 16, 2024

Prior to the game on Wednesday against the Minnesota Wild, Coyotes head coach André Tourigny said that the team and him both presumed it wasn’t going to be too serious.

“We thought it would be a 24 hour thing but it’s more than that,” Tourigny said. “It’s not week-to-week but it’s certainly day-to-day, so he (O’Brien) is unavailable.”

“We thought it would be a 24 hour thing. It’s more than that. It’s not week-to-week but it’s certainly day-to-day, so he is unavailable.”

Arizona #Coyotes head coach André Tourigny provided the reason F Liam O’Brien was not at practice this morning. #Yotes #NHL https://t.co/R6LRJNjKmd pic.twitter.com/AsEoc09M2Z

— Burn City Sports (@BurnCitySports) February 14, 2024

Now heading onto the IR, O’Brien’s timeline for a potential return is unknown.

Prior to this setback, he had 130 hits, three goals, five assists and led the NHL with 116 penalty minutes in 49 games this season.

The Coyotes do have options to fill in for O’Brien during his absence as Adam Ružička and Michael Carcone can both alternate in and out of the lineup when need be.

Ružička has played two games with the ‘Yotes since being claimed off waivers from the Calgary Flames on Jan. 25. Since making his debut for Arizona, he has zero points with one shot, hit and block.

As for Carcone, he has racked up 15 goals and five assists through 46 games prior to being scratched in the Coyotes’ last four.

Back inside Mullett Arena, the Coyotes will face the Carolina Hurricanes tonight at 7 p.m. MST.