Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Caleb Jones underwent surgery on his right shoulder and will miss the remainder of the season.
The surgery took place March 18 and was announced by the team Friday. The prescribed recovery time is four to six months. Jones is expected to be ready for the start of the 2026-27 season.
Jones has missed most of the 2025-26 season for a variety of reasons.
Opening the campaign on the team’s third pairing, the left-handed Jones appeared in seven of the team’s first eight games. Primarily skating on the left side of the third pairing, Jones recorded a single assist while averaging 17:10 of ice time per contest.
A suspected left foot injury he suffered Oct. 23 landed him on injured reserve. By Jan. 12, he was deployed to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League for a conditioning assignment.
But in his lone appearance with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Jan. 14, he injured his right shoulder.
By Feb. 4, the NHL announced Jones was suspended 20 games for violating terms of the NHL/NHLPA Performance Enhancing Substances Program.
Through the NHLPA, the 28-year-old Jones issued a statement explaining the circumstances that led to his suspension.
“At the time of the test, I was receiving an exosome therapy for a documented injury from an outside provider,” Jones stated. “I believe that my positive test was related to a contaminated substance associated with that treatment. While I did not use the prohibited substance intentionally or for performance enhancement, I understand that players are responsible for everything that enters their body and accept the discipline imposed by the program. I’m sorry to have let down my teammates, the Penguins organization, and our fans.”
Jones’ suspension came to an end Tuesday.
The Penguins signed Jones as an unrestricted free agent this past offseason, agreeing to a two-year contract with a salary cap hit of $900,000.