Senators’ Tyler Kleven week-to-week with lower-body injury

Ottawa Senators defenseman Tyler Kleven will be sidelined on a week-to-week basis after sustaining a lower-body injury, Senators head coach Travis Green confirmed Monday per Julian McKenzie of The Athletic.

Facing the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday, Kleven exited early into the second period and did not return following a fight with Jets captain Adam Lowry. Kleven was then held out of the lineup for Saturday’s showdown against the San Jose Sharks.

Skating in his third season with the Senators, Kleven has made 58 appearances in which he has tallied two goals and two assists for four points coupled with 23 penalty minutes and a minus-five rating.

Originally chosen 44th overall by Ottawa in the 2020 NHL Draft, Kleven spent most of the 2023-24 campaign with the AHL’s Belleville Senators where through 53 outings with the minor-league squad he notched five goals and 16 assists to finish third among defensemen with 21 points. Kleven also saw nine showings with the Senators in which he registered one assist with two penalty minutes and a minus-one mark. In all, through part of three seasons and 75 total games with the Senators, Kleven has notched two goals and five assists for seven points.

Prior to joining the Senators, the 23-year-old native of Fargo, N.D., spent three seasons with the NCAA’s North Dakota Fighting Hawks in which he amassed 20 goals and 15 assists for 35 points over 95 contests. In 2021, Kleven helped the Americans to a gold medal finish at the World Juniors after putting up one point in two games.

For the Senators, the club sits 30-25-4 on the season and two points back of the Atlantic Division rival Detroit Red Wings for the second wildcard position in the Eastern Conference. The Senators last qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2017.