Veteran NHL defenseman is unlikely to play in the league again due to a severe ankle injury, according to St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong.
Krug has not appeared in a game since the 2024 season and has missed the entire current season while dealing with the significant ankle issue.
Over his more than 12-year NHL career, Krug is most recognized for his time with the Boston Bruins and the St. Louis Blues.
“I don’t expect him to play again,” Armstrong told the media. “He’s hoping I’m wrong, and so am I. He’s doing what he can, but the surgery he underwent was extremely invasive.”
The highlight of Krug’s career came in 2019, when he helped lead the Bruins to the Stanley Cup Final. They lost in seven games to the Blues, the team he would later join.
Krug began his NHL career with Boston in 2012 and remained there until 2020, when he signed a seven-year contract with St. Louis.
At 34, Krug was often featured on his team’s top defensive pairing and played a key role on the power play, frequently serving as the lone defenseman on the ice during those situations.
In the 2019 Stanley Cup Final, Krug made history by becoming the first Bruins player to notch four points in a championship-series game, tallying a goal and three assists in a dominant 7–2 win on what would later become his home rink in St. Louis.
This season, the Blues came close to advancing to the second round of the NHL playoffs without Krug but were eliminated in a Game 7 overtime loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday.