Injury Report: Bruins forward out long-term

The Boston Bruins have announced that forward Ryan Spooner will be out of the team’s lineup for four to six weeks with a groin tear.

The 25-year-old center suffered the injury during Sunday’s loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, but the nature of the injury wasn’t revealed by the team until yesterday afternoon. Entering his sixth season with the Bruins, the 2017-18 campaign is a pivotal one for Spooner. While he’s show potential and flashes of brilliance throughout his young NHL career, the young forward simply hasn’t provided enough consistency to warrant regular top-six minutes.

With just one assist in the Bruins’ first five games, things weren’t looking good for Spooner to begin with, but the latest news all but destroys his opportunity to reach new career highs. After putting up 13 goals and 49 points in 2015-16, Spooner struggled last season to muster 11 goals and 39 points. As a result he was re-upped for just a single season at a cap hit of $2.825 million this past summer.