By GREG BEACHAM AP Sports Writer
LOS ANGELES — Ducks center Leo Carlsson will be sidelined for three to five weeks after undergoing a procedure to treat a left thigh injury, putting his Olympic participation for Sweden in question.
Carlsson had the procedure on Friday in Los Angeles on a Morel-Lavallée lesion – a rare degloving injury in which skin and fat become separated from fascia tissue, leaving a fluid-filled space.
Carlsson, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, got off to an exceptional start for the Ducks this season with 38 points in his first 29 games. He has been in a scoring slump for the past month, producing just six points in the past 15 games.
The 21-year-old Carlsson was selected for Sweden’s Olympic team, but the Milan-Cortina Games begin in 3½ weeks.
Carlsson is still the leading scorer for the Ducks this season with 44 points in 44 games. His extended absence is another setback for the Ducks, who had lost nine of their past 10 games going into Friday after spending much of the season’s first 2½ months in first place in the Pacific Division.
The Ducks were facing off with the Kings on Friday night at Crypto.com Arena for the first leg of a home-and-home Freeway Faceoff miniseries.