Ducks’ Leo Carlsson out 3-5 weeks with thigh injury, threatening his OIympic availability for Sweden

By Canadian Press on January 16, 2026.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Anaheim Ducks center Leo Carlsson will be sidelined for three to five weeks after undergoing a procedure to treat a left thigh injury, putting his Olympic participation for Sweden in question.

Carlsson had the procedure Friday in Los Angeles on a Morel-Lavallée lesion — a rare degloving injury in which skin and fat become separated from fascia tissue, leaving a fluid-filled space.

Carlsson, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2023 draft, got off to an exceptional start for the Ducks this season with 38 points in his first 29 games. He has been in a scoring slump for the past month, producing just six points in the past 15 games.

The 21-year-old Carlsson was selected for Sweden’s Olympic team, but the Milan-Cortina Games begin in 3 1/2 weeks.

Carlsson is still the leading scorer for the Ducks this season with 44 points in 44 games. His extended absence is another setback for Anaheim, which has lost nine of its last 10 games after spending much of the season’s first 2 1/2 months in first place in the Pacific Division.

The Ducks visited the Los Angeles Kings on Friday night for the first leg of a home-and-home Freeway Faceoff miniseries.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/nhl

Greg Beacham, The Associated Press