Jets’ Nathan Beaulieu ruled out through All-Star break with lower-body injury

Adding to this miserable current stretch, the Winnipeg Jets will be without another defenceman as @Nathan Beaulieu has been ruled out through the All-Star break due to injury, the club announced Friday.

Following the team’s morning practice at Canada Life Centre, interim coach Dave Lowry revealed that Beaulieu suffered a lower-body injury during Thursday’s loss to the Vancouver Canucks. As a result, he’ll remain in Winnipeg during this upcoming two-game road trip to conclude the unofficial first half of the regular season.

Beaulieu, 29, is the latest member of the Jets’ rapidly depleted blue-line to sit out due to injury, joining @Dylan DeMelo (upper-body), @Logan Stanley (lower-body), @Dylan Samberg (upper-body) and @Josh Morrissey (COVID-19).

Without these five blueliners, Winnipeg will be forced to call upon additional defenders from its prospect system, which will see either @Declan Chisholm or @Leon Gawanke draw in as an injury replacement. Additionally, rookie @Johnathan Kovacevic, who made his NHL debut Thursday, is also expected to be activated from the taxi squad for a second straight game.

Based on Friday’s practice, here are the Jets’ projected defensive pairings for Saturday’s contest:

@Brenden Dillon – @Nate Schmidt

@Ville Heinola – @Neal Pionk

Chisholm – Kovacevic

Winnipeg will attempt to end its six-game losing streak against the St. Louis Blues on Saturday, beginning at 2:00 pm CT.