According to Tom Gulitti, New Jersey Devils defenseman Anton Volchenkov fractured his ankle while playing for the KHL's Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod and is expected to miss four to six weeks.
As Gulitti stated on his blog, the NHL and NHLPA could still reach an agreement to have the season start on November 2nd, meaning Volchenkov could miss the first two months of the adjusted 2012-2013 campaign. If the injury takes the full six weeks to heal, which is likely for the 30-year-old defenseman, Volchenkov would be fully recovered by December 3.
If the lockout does end while Volchenkov is recovering, the Devils may suspend him without pay until he is healthy to play. In the meantime, Volchenkov would miss 14 regularly scheduled games plus any game that the NHL adds to make up for the matchups lost in October.
This is a huge loss for the Devils as Volchenkov has become one of the more physical defensemen on the roster. He led the team and was 43rd in the league with 177 hits last season, and his plus-three rating is the second-best amongst returning Devils defensemen.
As for the rest of the team, New Jersey should be able to survive without Volch ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Joseph Kuchie
NHL Lockout: How Anton Volchenkov’s Injury Affects the New Jersey Devils Roster
October 22nd, 2012 by Joseph Kuchie Leave a reply »
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