Calgary Flames forward Kevin Rooney out long term with upper body injury

Calgary Flames head coach Ryan Huska confirmed during a media availability on Wednesday that center Kevin Rooney suffered an upper-body injury in practice earlier this week.

Huska stated that Rooney’s injury is “not short-term” with no specific timeline.

The Flames bench boss also followed up on Jakob Pelletier’s injury status, saying the winger’s shoulder surgery went according to plan. Still, there is no expected timeline on when he might return.

Rooney, 30, is an undrafted center who played for and captained Providence College during his tenure in the NCAA. Over his four-year collegiate career, the center registered 36 points in 144 games played. Afterwards, the forward signed an AHL-only contract with the Albany Devils on July 5, 2016. His play for New Jersey’s AHL affiliate eventually earned him an NHL contract with the New Jersey Devils for the remainder of the 2016-17 season.

Moving ahead, Rooney managed to continue receiving NHL contracts. He’s played for three organizations during his NHL career, including the Devils, New York Rangers, and Calgary Flames. The physical 6-foot-2, 190-pound forward has amassed 46 points in 227 games played while adding 118 penalty minutes.

Now that Rooney and Pelletier appear to be injured for a long stretch Calgary’s fourth-line makeup is clouded in uncertainty. According to Cap Friendly, the Flames are sitting at $213,333 over the salary cap, with LTIR only being an option for Rooney and Pelletier if they’re out for 10 games and 24 days.