The Ottawa Senators won't get Tyler Kleven back in the lineup for Game 1.
After practising in a non-contact jersey on Friday, the Senators determined that Kleven won't be ready for the team's series opener against the Carolina Hurricanes (Saturday on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ - Coverage starts at 2:30).
Head coach Travis Green was optimistic that he was close to returning.
"He's closer to playing, obviously, he's out with the group," Green said.
The 24-year-old has been out since April 2 after sustaining an upper-body injury against the Buffalo Sabres. He was injured in the first period when a hard slapshot careened up and appeared to hit him in the head.
The left-shot blue-liner has three goals and 18 points while appearing in 69 games this season and leads all Ottawa defencemen with 126 hits.
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