The Carolina Hurricanes announced on Thursday afternoon that goaltender Frederik Andersen will undergo knee surgery on Friday and is expected to miss 8-12 weeks.
Andersen suffered a lower-body injury in a 4-1 win over the Seattle Kraken in late October. Despite finishing the game, head coach Rod Brind’Amour shared with reporters the next day that Andersen had come up “a little gimpy” after the win and would be re-evaluated after the road trip.
Related: Hurricanes Goalie Trade Targets Following Frederik Andersen Injury News
After being labeled week-to-week, Brind’Amour shared with local media last week that Andersen could be out “way longer.” Now we know what way longer means. The team’s starting goaltender has now missed the last 14 games and could be out until February (the long end of the timeframe).
Anderson to Undergo Clean-Up Procedure
On Thursday, NHL insider Pierre Lebrun broke the news that Andersen would be going under the knife for a procedure described as a “clean-up” that will keep him off the ice for about 8 weeks.
The 35-year-old goaltender played in four games this season, with a 3-1-0 record. After missing most of last season with a blood-clotting issue, he was off to a blistering start with a 1.48 goals-against average and a .941 save percentage.
This marks the third season in a row that he will miss significant time with injury.
Pyotr Kochetkov and Spencer Martin will continue to handle the goaltending duties in Andersen’s absence but expect to hear the Hurricanes thrown around in every goaltending trade rumor moving forward. Kochetkov, making his case to be number one, is 10-2-0 on the season with a .909 save percentage. Martin is 1-1-0, including his first career NHL shutout. He has a .891 save percentage in three appearances.
Carolina has not skipped a beat without Andersen, with a 9-2-0 record since he’s been out. Martin is the projected starter for Thursday’s game against the New Jersey Devils.
