Senators’ Andre Burakovsky leaves game with upper-body injury

The Ottawa Senators may have just lost another forward.

Senators winger Andre Burakovsky left Thursday’s game against the Los Angeles Kings with an upper-body injury, and the team announced that he will not return to the game.

The injury appeared to occur in the first period during a corner battle with Kings defenseman Mikey Anderson. Burakovsky fell to the ice after protecting the puck along the boards for an extended period of time, and was slow to get up.

Ottawa is already missing forwards William Eklund and Warren Foegele due to injury.

Burakovsky, 31, was scoreless in seven games coming into Thursday. The Austrian national missed four games earlier this season with an upper-body injury. It’s unclear if Thursday’s injury is at all related to his earlier injury.

The Senators acquired Burakovsky from the Chicago Blackhawks this past offseason in exchange for a sixth-round pick in the 2027 NHL Entry Draft. Last season with Chicago, he notched 11 goals and 22 assists for 33 points in 75 games.

Selected 23rd overall by the Washington Capitals in the 2013 NHL Draft, Burakovsky spent his first five NHL seasons in Washington before getting traded to the Colorado Avalanche in June of 2019 in exchange for forward Scott Kosmachuk and a third-round pick. He enjoyed his most productive years in Colorado, including the 2021-22 season in which he registered 22 goals and 39 assists for a career-high 61 points in 80 games.

Burakovsky signed a five-year, $27.5 million contract as an unrestricted free agent with the Seattle Kraken in July of 2022. He spent three seasons in Seattle before getting traded to the Blackhawks in exchange for forward Joe Veleno.

After Thursday’s game in Los Angeles, the Senators will continue their five-game road trip against the San Jose Sharks on Saturday.