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A slash from Eric Staal knocked Johnny Gaudreau out of the game on Tuesday. Yesterday the team announced that he needed surgery, but the timetable was unknown. Today Calgary Flames' general manager Brad Treliving announced the timetable and it isn't good.
Brad Treliving has an update Johnny Gaudreau: he underwent successful surgery yesterday & there is a 6-week timeline for his return. pic.twitter.com/jLSnAMEyHc
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) November 17, 2016
Originally people only expected Gaudreau to be out for four weeks. Six would indicate that the injury and surgery required were worse than what people were speculating. The Flames have the fifth worst offense in the league and have the second worst goals for percentage in the league and really couldn't afford to lose their best scorer.
It will be a tough road ahead. There's always a chance that he could return sooner than imagined, but given the team's positioning and the amount of money they just doled out for Gaudreau, it probably behooves them to ensure that he returns 100 percent healthy. Hopefully somebody can step up.