Victor Hedman breaks finger vs. Canucks, will miss 4-6 weeks
Victor Hedman has been playing at an elite level for several years now. The Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman has played his way from being known as “the guy drafted after John Tavares” into a legitimate Norris Trophy contender in 2015.
Well, that Norris talk will have to be put on hold for a bit after Hedman suffered a broken finger while blocking a shot against Vancouver on Saturday night:
The Lightning announced that Hedman will now miss 4-6 weeks after he undergoes surgery on Tuesday.
As of Monday, Hedman is tied for first in both points by defensemen (7) and power play points by defensemen (5), all while averaging 19:53 of ice time. The responsibilities will increase for Anton Stralman and Jason Garrison as the 23-year old Swede recovers.
Tampa’s been down this road before having lost Steven Stamkos for four months last season. But after a solid summer of signing free agents by general manager Steve Yzerman, head coach Jon Cooper isn’t worried.
“If there is a team that has weathered a storm like this before, it was our guys last year when Stammer went down. So I guess we are a little bit mentally equipped for it,'' Cooper said via the Tampa Tribune.
“The one thing I believe that we accomplished in the summer was we went out and got some depth (on defense).’'
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Sean Leahy is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Sean_Leahy
