IRVINE — Hampus Lindholm crashed-landed so heavily into the boards during the Ducks’ Feb. 25 game at Honda Center that he looked like one of those crash-test dummies tumbling out of control.

The defenseman had been battling for a loose puck with Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers before falling awkwardly. His back, shoulder and head took the brunt of his second-period spill.

Lindholm sat out for the fifth consecutive game Friday against the Toronto Maple Leafs because of multiple upper-body injuries, and Ducks general manager Bob Murray said Saturday there was no timetable for his return to the lineup. It could be later rather than sooner, however.

“There’s no timeline, no timeline whatsoever,” Murray said.

The news on Lindholm’s fellow injured defensemen – Cam Fowler, Eric Gudbranson and Josh Manson – was better, Murray said. Fowler has been out for nine games because of a lower-body injury. Gudbranson (upper body) has been sidelined 13 games and Manson (upper body) has missed two.

“It looks like Josh and Eric are pretty close,” Murray said. “I think Josh will play (Sunday) for sure. Eric has been cleared by doctors, but I don’t know if he’s quite ready yet. Cam skated hard three days in a row now. We’re going to be careful. I’m thinking middle of the week. Maybe.”

The Ducks host the Minnesota Wild on Sunday and the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday before facing St. Louis on Wednesday in a makeup game of their Feb. 11 game that was postponed after Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester suffered a cardiac arrest on the bench in the first period.

DEFENSE CORPS (PART 2)

Despite playing without their four top defensemen, the Ducks have won consecutive games Friday over the Maple Leafs and Wednesday over the Colorado Avalanche. Murray said he has been pleasantly surprised by the play of the replacements in the past two games.

“I think they’re competing hard,” he said of the Ducks’ new-look defense corps, including Jani Hakanpaa, a 27-year-old Finn who has played his first two NHL games this week. “The silver lining to everything is we’re getting a good look at some people in some tough situations.

“The bad part is I’d like to see Cam and Hampus, our good puck-movers, playing with some of the young forwards we have here now. That’s the bad side right now. I’d like to see it, but I don’t know if we’re going to see it.”

DEFENSE CORPS (PART 3)

The Ducks clogged the neutral zone in each of the past two games, cutting down on the time and space available to the opposition’s skilled players, including Auston Matthews of the Maple Leafs and Nathan MacKinnon of the Avalanche. There was an added physical element to their play, too.

Murray liked the edgy part of the Ducks’ game, but he also wanted more speed.

“In today’s age, it’s almost like you have to have two different teams,” he said. “You’ve got to have a skilled team to get you into the playoffs, to play 82 games, and then you’ve got to have physical team (in the playoffs). It was all speed for a while, but the last two teams to win it were heavy.”

Murray referred to the Blues and the Washington Capitals, the last two Stanley Cup champions. Related Articles NHL, players unveil series of anti-racism initiatives

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“You go back to L.A., and that series we had against Chicago, they were heavy, every series,” Murray said. “That’s still the type of hockey in seven-game series, that skill with the heaviness, so we have to continue to have a combination of both. But, yeah, I like that we’re trying to finish checks.

“Right now, this team, that’s how they have to play.”

GIBSON UPDATE

Murray said goaltender John Gibson suffered a groin muscle spasm near the end of the Ducks’ 2-1 victory Friday over the Maple Leafs, which was why he yielded to Ryan Miller for the final 9:40. Miller is likely to start Sunday against the Wild, with Gibson available to play again Tuesday against the Senators.