Devils' Evgenii Dadonov to miss time with injury

It has been a tough season for New Jersey Devils winger Evgenii Dadonov. He missed 17 games due to a hand injury suffered in his debut with the team last month, returning to the lineup last week. Now, he’s out of the lineup again as head coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters Wednesday (video link) that the veteran will be out “for a period of time” due to another injury. At this time, they are still doing testing so the timeline for his potential return is not yet known.

The 36-year-old is in his first season with the Devils after signing a one-year deal with them over the summer. He ultimately accepted a bonus-laden pact, one that carries a $1M base salary plus an additional $2.25M in performance bonuses. Some are tied to playoff performance and success but more than half are geared toward regular season outings, maxing out at 50. Another extended absence could put the ability to hit that mark out of reach.

The undisclosed injury occurred in Monday’s victory over the Detroit Red Wings and it appeared to worsen on Tuesday, leading to further testing and this announcement that he’ll be out for at least a bit. When healthy, Dadonov has been quiet offensively, being held off the scoresheet in his five outings while averaging a little over 11 minutes per night of playing time.

Juho Lammikko took Dadonov’s spot in the lineup Wednesday against the St. Louis Blues. With blueliners Brett Pesce and Johnathan Kovacevic on LTIR, New Jersey has several million in flexibility at the moment per PuckPedia, so a recall from AHL Utica is likely coming in the near future. Meanwhile, Dadonov joins those two along with center Jack Hughes and winger Zack MacEwen in New Jersey’s infirmary.