William Eklund undergoes ankle surgery as battered Senators blue line gets boost with Artem Zub return

The Ottawa Senators’ battered blue line is getting some reinforcements.

Veteran defenceman Artem Zub will suit up for his first game of the season on Thursday against the New York Islanders at Canadian Tire Centre, while Cameron Crotty also will return after spending a week on the injured reserve list.

Top defenceman Jake Sanderson, who left the club’s opener against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 3 with a lower-body ailment, was a full participant in the club’s morning skate and is trending towards a return against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday.

But not all the news was good. Coach Travis Green told reporters that winger William Eklund had surgery on Wednesday to repair a torn tendon in his ankle and the timeline for his recovery is 10 to 12 weeks, which puts him back in late December.

The initial concern was that Eklund suffered a high ankle sprain, but further testing revealed the tear.

The Senators sent defencemen Hoyt Stanley and Jorian Donovan back to the club’s American Hockey League affiliate in Belleville on Thursday morning. Crotty was activated from IR after being a late scratch for the club’s home opener a week ago.

Winger Ridly Greig, who left the club’s 7-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday night with a strain, was on the ice and was a full participant in the skate.

After missing the first seven games with the knee injury he suffered on a hit on Seth Jarvis in the club’s first-round playoff series against the Carolina Hurricanes, Zub has spent six months recovering from the ailment.

It has been 180 days since Zub left Game 1 of the club’s four-game sweep of the Canes. Doctors didn’t recommend surgery to recover from the injury, but nobody thought he would be out this long, either. Zub has been skating since August.

But there were bumps along the way and Zub did suffer a setback, which didn’t allow him to start the season.

His absence, along with the fact that Sanderson hasn’t played since he suited up for the season opener against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 3, has left the club without its top pairing.

Zub wil become the 10th defenceman to suit up for the Senators this season when he faces the Islanders, in only the club’s eighth game. Last year, the Senators used 13 blueliners and the club hopes it can stay healthy for a while here.

He didn’t expect to be out this long. Zub said he skated and that his training was normal this summer.

“It’s a long break for me,” Zub said on Thursday morning. “It will be a little bit simple for me for the first couple of games.

“It’s tough. It’s actually been six months. I’ve spent a lot of time on the recovery, but I’m happy to be back.”

Zub skated with captain Thomas Chabot during the morning skate and the club is expected to start the game that way.

“It’s awesome to see some guys slowly making their way back,” Chabot said. “It’s great that Zub is back. He’s a big piece of the puzzle on our team. It will be fun to have him playing again.”

It would be surprising if Sanderson doesn’t face the Flyers, but Green wouldn’t commit when pressed.

“He’s close,” Green said.

The club is also still without defenceman Nikolas Matinpalo, who was injured when he was hit into the boards on Monday in New Jersey by Anthony Mantha and there is no timetable for his return.

The Senators went through this last year when Zub and Sanderson were both injured in the series against the Hurricanes. To make matters worse, Chabot was playing with a broken arm, but the Senators won’t let injuries be an excuse.

“I’m not surprised we did it last year in probably even worse conditions,” Chabot said of the injuries. “Every guy that came in the lineup got the job done and that’s kind of what it’s always been about is the next-man-up mentality.

“And it doesn’t matter. We’re not the only team going through injuries and missing tons of guys. Everybody stepped up, and obviously having Zub back tonight is going to help out for sure.”

The loss of Eklund for at least 30 games is a huge blow. He was injured in the club’s home opener against the Philadelphia Flyers when he slammed into the boards on a hit from Simon Benoit.

The timeline for the surgery is a best-case scenario, which means the Senators will have to soldier on without the player they brought in from the San Jose Sharks when they sent captain Brady Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers in June.