Thursday, January 08, 2015

Preds Add Neal to the IR

Already having missed a few games with a lower-body injury, the Nashville Predators have decided to open up a roster spot by adding James Neal to the Injured Reserve.  It looks as though Neal should be eligible to return in the next few days, assuming he's okay to do so, but in the meantime, the Predators will give Miikka Salomaki another spin with the big club.

Neal is still thought to be day-to-day, since there is no timetable given to his return, but he was removed from the active roster for the game against the Dallas Stars on Thursday night.

Neal was acquired by the Predators from the Penguins in the off-season and has been good for Nashville, scoring 13 goals and 10 assists in 35 games with the club. He went into tonight's action in 138th overall in pool scoring, maybe not quite as high as he'd want to be, but his season has been hampered by injuries.

Grant S. has been enjoying his season, at the very least, as Neal has chimed in well for his team, but he is falling behind expectations, having been picked 79th overall in the 4th round.  If this injury starts to become a long-term issue, Grant may see some issues with the buffer between him in 2nd and whoever is sitting in 3rd, as the battle for the spot below him is really ramping up.

An updated list of injuries can be found here.

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