The bad luck seems to be set to continue for the Vancouver Canucks after top defenseman Filip Hronek, the complement to captain Quinn Hughes, suffered an apparent shoulder injury in Wednesday's 5-4 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Hronek played 26:50 in the loss, recording an assist, two shots on goal, and a +2 rating across his 26 shifts. The Czech rearguard suffered his injury with time winding down and Arturs Silovs pulled for an extra attacker. According to Canucks insider Irfaan Gaffar, Hronek is likely "to be out for a while" with his injury.
Sounds like Canuck Defenceman Filip Hronek is going to be out a while with an upper body injury.
— Irfaan Gaffar (@irfgaffar) November 28, 2024
But, what is a while? And what is the nature of Hronek's injury? These are two burning questions with Derek Forbort and J.T. Miller already out for the Canucks.
Will Filip Hronek undergo shoulder surgery?
Fortunately for the Canucks, it does not sound like Hronek's shoulder surgery is too serious. Gaffar later reported that "it doesn't look like" surgery will be required to help Hronek recover from his upper-body injury. Even so, a "while" in hockey, especially dealing with a high-functioning body part like the shoulder area, could mean that Hronek is out for upwards of a month. The Canucks will more than likely provide updates as they become available, and it appears that disaster has been averted with Hronek for now.
Want to add that it doesn’t look like surgery is going to be required for this injury which is some good news.
— Irfaan Gaffar (@irfgaffar) November 28, 2024
In the meantime, this confirms that the Canucks will be left with only six healthy defensemen. The right side, on which Hronek plays, looks particularly weak. The last standing options at the position include Tyler Myers, Noah Juulsen, and Vincent Desharnais.
Juulsen has recently reclaimed and held onto a spot in the lineup, but Desharnais has not played in two weeks and counting. Additionally, Desharnais has never averaged more than 16 minutes of ice time a night in any season in his brief NHL career thus far. He is perhaps not the best suited to step up in a big spot, but desperate times call for desperate measures for the Canucks.