Jonathan Bernier exits Ducks game at Sharks with upper-body injury

Josh Cooper
PITTSBURGH, PA - OCTOBER 15: Jonathan Bernier #1 of the Anaheim Ducks looks on against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena on October 15, 2016 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images)
Jonathan Bernier of the Anaheim Ducks looks on against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena on October 15, 2016 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Getty Images)

Anaheim Ducks goaltender Jonathan Bernier exited his team’s Tuesday game against the San Jose Sharks with an upper body injury.

It’s unclear when exactly Bernier was hurt. He had stopped 10 of 11 shots on goal after one period of action. It was just the second game for Bernier with his new team this season. John Gibson started the second period for the Ducks.

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After the game, a 2-1 overtime loss for Anaheim, Ducks coach Randy Carlyle said Bernier suffered a muscle injury and would be reassessed Wednesday. The Orange County Register noted that a recall of Dustin Tokarski from the AHL’s San Diego Gulls was possible. The Ducks play the Nashville Predators on Wednesday.

Bernier’s potential absence might require a call up of Dustin Tokarski from the Ducks’ AHL affiliate in San Diego. Gibson said he would be ready to go if called upon to start. He’ll need to bounce back quickly.

On Oct. 15 against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Bernier stopped 42 of 45 shots on goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins in a 3-2 loss.

The Ducks acquired Bernier last summer to give them another option in case Gibson, who was entering his second full season, had any hiccups. Bernier is a veteran of 214 NHL games, having spent the last three seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Bernier’s name has been mentioned in trade rumors as the Ducks try to pry loose some salary cap space to sign restricted free agent defenseman Hampus Lindholm. Bernier makes $4.15 million per-year.

Before the season, Anaheim believed Bernier and Gibson would share a lot of the load in 2016-17.

“We think that he’s a higher-level goaltender than what he’s played in his previous experience in Toronto,” said Ducks coach Randy Carlyle said in an early October story from the Orange County Register. “Simple as that. He has his fair share of criticism and stress and down cycle in the game.

“He’s a quality individual. He’s an extremely hard worker. He’s a talented goaltender. We think that he can provide us with NHL-level goaltending and we think that the fit for him is right, right now, with the young goalie in Gibby.”

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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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