Leafs’ Jarnkrok out at least 2 weeks due to groin injury

The Toronto Maple Leafs‘ injury woes continue as forward Calle Jarnkrok will miss at least two weeks with a groin injury, head coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters Friday, including Sportsnet’s Luke Fox.

Jarnkrok was hurt in Wednesday’s game against the San Jose Sharks. He left during the second period and did not return.

The 31-year-old was recently moved into the top six alongside John Tavares and Mitch Marner. He has five goals and nine points in 25 contests this season.

Nick Robertson is set to take Jarnkrok’s spot on the second line, according to TSN’s Mark Masters. Wayne Simmonds draws in on the fourth line.

Jarnkrok adds to an ever-growing list of unavailable players for the Maple Leafs as Morgan Rielly, TJ Brodie, Jake Muzzin, and Jordie Benn all remain out.

Toronto faces the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.

Jarnkrok joins Maple Leafs on 4-year, $8.4M contract

The Toronto Maple Leafs signed versatile forward Calle Jarnkrok to a four-year contract with an average annual value of $2.1 million, the team announced Friday.

The deal includes a limited no-trade clause, according to TSN’s Chris Johnston.

Jarnkrok recorded 12 goals and 18 assists in 66 games split between the Seattle Kraken and Calgary Flames last season. Calgary picked him up from Seattle at the trade deadline, but he notably struggled with the Flames, failing to score in 17 contests.

The Kraken scooped up the Swede in the expansion draft from the Nashville Predators, where Jarnkrok spent the first eight years of his career.

Jarnkrok, who has experience playing both center and wing, has been a consistent middle-six contributor in his career, averaging 15 goals and 20 assists per 82 games. The 30-year-old’s underlying numbers over the last three seasons are fairly average:

Evolving-Hockey.com

Evolving-Hockey projected Jarnkrok would sign a four-year deal with an AAV of $4.4 million.

The Maple Leafs currently have $757,000 in cap space with a roster of 21 players. They still have two restricted free agents to sign in Pierre Engvall and Rasmus Sandin, so a move to clear cap space may be on the horizon.

Flames acquire Jarnkrok from Kraken

The Seattle Kraken traded forward Calle Jarnkrok to the Calgary Flames in exchange for a 2022 second-round pick (originally the Florida Panthers’), a 2023 third-round selection, and a 2024 seventh-rounder, the team announced Wednesday.

Seattle will retain 50% of Jarnkrok’s salary.

This marks the Flames’ second big acquisition ahead of next week’s trade deadline after the club landed Tyler Toffoli from the Montreal Canadiens in February.

The Kraken selected Jarnkrok from the Nashville Predators in the expansion draft. The 30-year-old forward has 12 goals and 14 assists in 49 games this season and can slot in anywhere in the Flames’ lineup.

Calle Jarnkrok, acquired by CGY, is a versatile middle-six defensive forward who can chip in goals as well at 5v5. Was playing up in Seattle's lineup but will be best suited to a 3rd line role. #Flames pic.twitter.com/uAybrED1Tn

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) March 17, 2022

Jarnkrok is cousins with Flames forward Elias Lindholm, according to TSN’s Chris Johnston. The pair hail from the same small town in Sweden as teammate Jacob Markstrom, and they all work out together in the summer.

Calgary currently sits comfortably atop the Pacific Division with a 36-16-7 record.

Predators GM open to long-term contracts with Forsberg, Jarnkrok

Filip Forsberg and Calle Jarnkrok could be calling Nashville home for years to come.

Both forwards will become restricted free agents this summer and each appear to have swayed general manager Dave Poile into considering long-term deals for the pair.

“I think with Filip and Jarnkrok, if the figures were right, we’d be very excited to enter into longer-term contracts with them,” Poile said, according to Adam Vingan of the Tenessean. “It’s all about the fit for each and every player, and if we can get that right fit for them and for us, I think multiyear contracts would be great.”

Agent J.P. Barry – who represents Forsberg – admits that both sides have been in constant communication and are in the stage of hammering out a respected term.

“There’s a range of contracts out there for players this age,” Barry said. “The longer-term ones, there’s several at the five-, six-year mark and there’s only a couple that go as far as eight, so we’re trying to pinpoint the range that’s the most comfortable to both of us.”

After leading the club in scoring the last two seasons, Barry admits to using fellow players who have had stellar seasons coming out of their entry-level contracts as a jumping off point for Forsberg’s next contract.

Both Forsberg and Jarnkrok enjoyed career-years this season. Forsberg hit highs with 33 goals and 64 points, while Jarnkrok did the same collecting 16 goals and 30 points.