Kraken place Ryan Lindgren on injured reserve

Some tough news for one of the tougher blueliners in the NHL.

On Thursday, the Seattle Kraken announced that defenseman Ryan Lindgren has been placed on injured reserve due to an upper-body injury.

While league rules require Lindgren to miss just a week of action on IR, the team stated that the 28-year-old is expected to miss around 4-6 weeks due to the ailment.

Lindgren had appeared in each of the Kraken’s first four games of the 2026-27 season. However, during Tuesday night’s contest with a Pacific Division rival, the Vegas Golden Knights. Just 15 seconds into the contest, the Burnsville, Minn. native was hit hard from behind by Golden Knights forward Marc Gatcomb.

Lindgren would stay in the game for the rest of the first period, but when the middle frame began, No. 55 was nowhere to be seen, and Seattle said he wouldn’t return.

Based on the projected timeline, Lindgren is expected to miss the lineup well into November, with hopes he returns before American Thanksgiving. With him out, expect the Kraken to call up a blueliner from their American Hockey League affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds.

The Kraken have had a positive start to the season, as has Lindgren, despite not putting his name on the scoresheet yet. In four contests, he has no points but a +3 plus/minus, while averaging 12:45 of ice time.

Lindgren is in the second season of his four-year contract, which he signed with Seattle in July 2025. The deal carries a cap hit of $4.5 million through the 2028-29 campaign, with a modified no-trade clause, where the player submits a six-team no-trade list. He hoped to perform better this year than in his first season with the club, when he registered just nine points in 76 games.

The Kraken are back in action on Friday night, when they visit the Detroit Red Wings.