St. Louis Blues defenseman Torey Krug has pre-arthritic issues in ankle; could miss all of 2024-25 season

ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - The St. Louis Blues announced Tuesday defenseman Torey Krug has been diagnosed with pre-arthritic changes in his left ankle and there is a chance Krug could miss the entire 2024-2025 season.

The Blues say the injury is a cumulative result of a bone fracture suffered earlier in his playing career.

Krug will work to rehabilitate the injury through non-surgical interventions over the course of the next six to eight weeks. After that period, Krug will be re-evaluated to determine whether surgery will be necessary. If it does require surgery, Krug would miss the entire 2024-2025 season.

Krug is heading into year five of a seven-year deal worth $45.5 million he signed back in 2020. Over the first four years, Krug has posted 146 points (22 goals, 124 assists) and 154 penalty minutes in 255 regular-season games he appeared for the Blues.

Krug's tenure with the Blues has been the subject of trade speculation over the last few years, with Krug most notably using his no-trade clause to reject a move to the Philadelphia Flyers last year.

Should Krug require season-ending surgery, Krug can be placed on the long-term injured reserve (LTIR) and the Blues can exceed the salary cap by the amount of Krug's cap hit, which is set at $6.5 million. However, it is probably unlikely the Blues will use the extra cap space to make any significant additions as the club is still in the middle of a retool.

Should the Blues lose Krug for the entirety of 2024-2025, the Blues do have depth on the left side of the defense. Among the left side defenseman the Blues have include Scott Perunovich, Nick Leddy, and Tyler Tucker. The Blues have also recently signed Ryan Suter and Pierre-Olivier Joseph.