Penguins defenseman's solid start hits snag with IR placement

After spending most of last season in the minors, Caleb Jones was off to a nice start to his season with the Pittsburgh Penguins, playing largely a regular role on their third pairing. However, that early momentum will be on hold for a while as the team announced (Twitter link) that Jones has been placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury that will keep him out of the lineup for roughly eight weeks. He suffered the injury in the third period of Thursday’s victory over Florida.

The 28-year-old is in his first season with the Penguins after signing a two-year, $1.8M contract with them in free agency, securing a one-way commitment despite his limited NHL action the year before. Jones has suited up in seven of eight games so far this season, picking up an assist along with 15 blocked shots and 10 hits in a little over 17 minutes a night of playing time.

Jones has 255 career NHL appearances under his belt over parts of eight seasons with five different organizations. When he has been in the lineup, it has typically been in the role he had with Pittsburgh to start the year, spending time on their third pairing with a bit of penalty killing action when needed.

With seven other healthy blueliners on their active roster, the Penguins don’t necessarily need to call anyone up to replace Jones on the roster. However, fellow blueliner Harrison Brunicke can only play in three more NHL games before a decision needs to be made about burning the first year of his contract. If they decide to send him back to junior, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a recall come within the next week or so, earlier if they decide they want to take more time before making that choice.