LA Kings Trevor Moore back on IR with upper-body injury

Trevor Moore’s unlucky 2022-2023 campaign hit another bump in the road when the Los Angeles Kings moved him back onto the injured reserve on Tuesday with an upper-body issue.

The trip to the IR will be Moore’s second in short order. The forward returned from an injury earlier this month that he sustained in December, only to be hurt again after LA’s loss to the Minnesota Wild on February 21.

The Kings would have hoped Moore’s February 11 return from his earlier injury would strengthen their pursuit of the Pacific Division’s number one seed. Instead, the 27-year-old is sidelined again with just 21 games left.

Kings put left wing Trevor Moore on injured reserve. Moore has been out since last week's game at Minnesota. He's run into injury problems after missing 17 games between Dec. 23-Feb. 11. They do get back off IR winger Carl Grundstrom, who can be eligible tonight at Winnipeg.

— Eric Stephens (@icemancometh) February 28, 2023

In Moore’s absence, his high-leverage role as a top-six winger will most likely go to 20-year-old Quinton Byfield, who has seen playtime alongside Anze Kopitar and Adrian Kempe.

Moore’s recent injury luck is concerning for LA both on and off the ice; just a week before his initial injury against the Arizona Coyotes, Moore agreed to a five-year, $21 million extension with the Kings.

While Moore is a solid two-way player who has averaged around half a point per game since arriving in LA during the 2019-2020 season, his recent health record will not fill the organization with confidence over their investment.

In a corresponding move, Carl Grundstrom will return from an IR stint of his own that lasted 16 games.  Grundstrom is also a winger, but typically occupies a bottom-six role for the Kings.

Grundstrom has played regularly in the NHL for the Kings since 2020 and was rewarded for a solid standout showing in last season’s playoffs with a two-year, $2.6 million extension.

The Kings play the Winnipeg Jets tonight at 8 pm ET in a game that has playoff implications for both clubs.  They will seek to close the two-point gap between themselves and the Pacific-leading Las Vegas Golden Knights during a soft homestand against the Canadiens, Blues, and Capitals over the next week.