The Carolina Hurricanes received bad injury news in the case of star right winger Andrei Svechnikov, who will have season-ending surgery this week.
It’s a huge blow to this Stanley Cup-worthy team, as Svechnikov, who plays on the team’s top line of forwards, suffered a torn ACL.
Svechnikov, 22, played 17 minutes against the Vegas Golden Knights on March 11, but missed the team’s game against the New Jersey Devils. After undergoing tests on Monday, the Hurricanes saw what they didn’t want to see.
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"After further consultation with global experts in this field, it has been determined that the best course of action for Andrei's future is to have this surgery, and to have it done by our team orthopedist, Dr. Marty Isbell," president and general manager Don Waddell said, via ESPN. "We're confident that Andrei will make a full recovery."
Svechnikov has lived up to his second overall selection in the 2018 NHL Draft, as the Barnaul, Russia native has consistently poured in points to the stat sheet each season.
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This season, Svechnikov totaled 55 points (23 goals, 32 assists) in 64 games for the Hurricanes, a team that is tied atop the Metropolitan Division with the Devils.
The 94 points both teams have is good for second in the NHL behind the Boston Bruins (105).
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For his five-year career thus far, Svechnikov has 264 points with 112 goals and 152 assists in 347 games.
With Svechnikov out for the rest of the year, head coach Rod Brind’Amour will likely move Seth Jarvis up to the top line with Sebastian Aho and Jesse Puljujarvi, who Carolina traded for with the Edmonton Oilers prior to the NHL deadline.
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The Hurricanes still have a formidable group that includes Teuo Teravainen, Jesperi Kotakaniemi, Martin Necas, Jordan Staal and more. They are also rock solid on defense, with Jaccob Slavin and Brent Burns on that top line.