The Kings, it seems, dodged a bullet Monday when tests revealed that Jeff Carter has a deep bone bruise on his ankle, but no structural problems, general manager Dean Lombardi said.

Carter’s status is considered day-to-day. He will not play in tonight’s game against Edmonton at STAPLES Center, and it’s unknown whether he will be able to play in the final two regular-season games. Carter suffered the injury during Wednesday’s game at Calgary.

News of a deep bone bruise, while not great, is better than what Carter could have faced.

``No fracture, but he does have a very deep bone bruise,’’ Lombardi said. ``He’s listed as day-to-day, but the one thing we know is, there’s not any structural problem. It still is significant, but at least we know it’s not a structural issue.’’

On Friday, Carter described the ankle as ``pretty sore’’ and said he had rolled it after a collision with a Flames player. In recent days, Carter has been wearing a walking boot and using crutches, but Lombardi didn’t rule out Carter playing before the end of the regular season.

``On the X-ray, you can see where the white is, and once the white is gone he’s probably OK,’’ Lombardi said. ``It’s really hard to say. He is day-to-day, but this is painful. Without going into details, where it is, it’s not easy.’’