It was less than a week ago that the Chicago Blackhawks announced their intentions to be more transparent with injuries in the future. On Wednesday morning, they continued that practice by releasing further information about the recovery period for defenseman Connor Murphy.
Blackhawks Will Be Without Connor Murphy 8-12 Weeks
After announcing that Murphy underwent back surgery in the summer, the team announced he would originally miss up to eight weeks of action. That timetable has been extended after the team announced that there will be a six week period where he will be off the ice, before further tests would be needed to determine if another four week period of rest would be necessary before returning to action.
The Blackhawks released this information on Wednesday regarding Connor Murphy:
Medical update on Connor Murphy’s back injury, via #Blackhawks team physician Dr. Michael Terry. pic.twitter.com/SG3vyGU8R5
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) September 19, 2018
Chicago already knew that they would be without Murphy and Gustav Forsling in their defensive group to begin the year, but with the news today that Murphy could be out up to 12 weeks, the spotlight on the Blackhawks defense only grows brighter. Players like Brandon Manning, Brandon Davidson (still on his PTO with the team), and rookie Henri Jokiharju will be thrust into more regular roles. Especially Jokiharju, whose path to a spot on the NHL roster opened wider with the losses of Forsling and Murphy to begin the year.
Training camp and the preseason continues for Chicago after dropping their first preseason game on Tuesday night against the Columbus Blue Jackets in Columbus, 4-1. The Blackhawks travel to take on the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night for their second preseason game.