The Chicago Blackhawks announced on Tuesday that defenseman and Conn Smythe winner Duncan Keith will be out for four to six weeks with a meniscal tear in his right knee, for which he has already undergone surgery.
The release from the team states “Duncan underwent successful surgery today to repair his right knee meniscal tear… The surgery was successful and we expect him to return to full hockey activities in approximately 4-6 weeks.”
When the injury occurred isn’t clear. As CSN’s Tracey Myers points out, Keith played the entirety of Saturday’s win over the reeling Columbus Blue Jackets.
The loss of Keith for a month or more is a huge loss to the defending champions. On a somewhat thin blue line, he’s been a lynchpin for years, averaging 25:34 through the regular season last year and north of 24 minutes a game already this season.
In a potentially related report, Elliotte Friedman noted in Tuesday’s “30 Thoughts” column that the Blackhawks are reportedly making calls about acquiring a defenseman. If that’s an unreleated note, the frequency of those calls will increase. Though they’ll having bidding competition at this point with the Blue Jackets desperately searching for a defenseman as well.
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Dustin Nelson is the News Editor for The Hockey Writers. He’s a contributor to Hockey Prospectus, Hockey Wilderness, and writes a column for Rotowire. He’s also written for Gone Puck Wild, Wild Xtra, InDigest, Electric Literature, The Rumpus, Tiny Mix Tapes, Prefix Magazine & other publications. Have a tip? Email him at dlukenelson[at]gmail[dot]com.
