Logan Couture injured in Sharks’ loss to St. Louis Blues

Logan Couture suffered what appeared to be a left leg injury in the second period of what turned out to be a 3-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center

The Sharks’ five-game road trip came to an unfortunate and potentially devastating end Tuesday night as captain Logan Couture suffered a lower body injury in the second period of a 3-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center.

Couture was involved in a collision on the end boards with St. Louis defenseman Vince Dunn, as the two came together as they chased after a loose puck in the Blues’ end to the right of goalie Jordan Binnington. As Dunn got to the puck, Couture’s left leg or kneecap collided with the end boards.

Couture immediately went down on the ice and as he got up, reached and grabbed his left knee before he was helped off the ice. He did not return.

Sharks interim coach Bob Boughner said Couture had x-rays on his leg and added that he believed they were negative. Boughner said Couture was in a walking boot and that he would be reassessed Wednesday.

“I don’t think it’s going to be anything too, too serious,” Boughner said.

The play happened with 12:28 left in the second period, with the Sharks trailing the Blues 2-0 on goals by Tyler Bozak and Ivan Barbashev.

Timo Meier scored a power play goal for the Sharks at the 2:14 mark of the third period to cut the Blues’ lead to 2-1. But St. Louis responded just at the 4:07 mark, with David Perron scoring his 18th of the season.

Erik Karlsson scored with 3:10 left in regulation time to cut the Blues’ lead back to one, but the Sharks (19-22-4) could get no closer as they finished the road trip with a 2-2-1 record. The Sharks were coming off a 5-4 overtime loss to the Washington Capitals on Sunday in which they blew a two-goal lead in the final minute of the third period.

Goalie Aaron Dell, who backstopped the Sharks to wins over Pittsburgh and Columbus, finished with 24 saves as his record fell to 6-7-2.

The Sharks return home to play their next two games, hosting the Blue Jackets on Thursday and former captain Joe Pavelski and the Dallas Stars on Saturday.

Couture, the Sharks’ top line center, leads the team this season with 36 points in 44 games. He was selected to the NHL All-Star Game for the second time in his career last week.

Several angles of the injury to Logan Couture. #SJSharks | #StlBlues | #SJSvsSTL pic.twitter.com/zTxAKg3KdY

— Teal Town USA – A San Jose Sharks Podcast (@TealTownUSA) January 8, 2020

With Couture out, Tomas Hertl moved to center the Sharks’ top line with Patrick Marleau on one wing. For the rest of the second period, Stefan Noesen skated on the the top line for one shift and Evander Kane was on that line for another.

For years, Couture has been Sharks’ do-everything forward. He plays on the No. 1 power play unit, kills penalties and regularly matches up against the opposition’s top line. This season, he is averaging 18 minutes and 55 second per game, second most among all Sharks forwards behind Kane (19:31).

Couture’s potential absence would come as the Sharks are desperately trying to rejoin the playoff chase. The Sharks entered Tuesday in 13th place in the Western Conference, eight points out of a playoff spot.

“It’s big time concerning,” Boughner said of the injury. “Even if it’s just a couple games or whatever, it’s a couple weeks, a captain, obviously, a leader. He’s a catalyst of our offense, penalty kill. Everything. That’ll be a tough loss, but hopefully it’s not too long and it’s just a day-to-day thing.

“When a guy like that goes down, everybody is very shocked.”

The Sharks have generally avoided any serious injuries this season.

Defenseman Dalton Prout has played only two games as he continues to deal with concussion symptoms. Defenseman Radim Simek had missed 22 games earlier with issues related to his surgically repaired right knee. Others such as Mario Ferraro, Hertl and Marcus Sorensen have missed a handful of games due to injury, and Kane had to serve a three-game suspension at the start of the season.

“We could have used him today and we’re going to need him moving forward as well,” Karlsson said after the game. “(Injuries are) something that every team has to go through, no matter where you are in the standings. We have to find a way within the group to figure all that out if he can’t come back and play anytime soon. That’s just the way it is.”