A neverending cycle of injuries has plagued the Washington Capitals this season. It appears as if that cycle will continue on Saturday as starting netminder Darcy Kuemper left practice at MedStar Capitals Iceplex after speaking with a member of the team’s training staff.

Kuemper was on the ice early for the skate, left, came back to stretch, spoke with head coach Peter Laviolette, and then left again. He did not return.

The Athletic’s Tarik El-Bashir reports that the team says it’s an upper-body injury that Kuemper is dealing with.

Believe it’s an upper body injury for Kuemper. #Caps https://t.co/Akrxr96R2T

— Tarik El-Bashir (@Tarik_ElBashir) March 18, 2023

Kuemper was the goalie of record in the Capitals’ rough 5-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Friday night. He made just 17 stops on 21 shots against.

In the month of March, Kuemper has a 3-3-1 record with a 2.72 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage.

If Kuemper is truly injured, it will be the second time this season after he missed eight games after being elbowed in the head against the Calgary Flames on December 3.

When Kuemper went down, backup goaltender Charlie Lindgren took over the starting job and excelled. Lindgren was named the NHL’s First Star of the Week for the week ending on December 11 after posting a 4-0-0 record with a 1.50 goals-against average and .949 save percentage. He led the NHL in both wins (4) and saves (111) during that span.

The Capitals plan to fly to Minnesota later on Saturday to play Kuemper’s former team, the Wild.

Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB