The Vancouver Canucks are going to be missing Filip Hronek for a long time.
The team provided an update on the injured defenceman today and it sounds like he won’t be back anytime soon.
According to the team, the blueliner recently underwent a procedure for a lower-body injury and will miss approximately eight weeks. He will not require surgery on his upper-body injury.
General Manager Patrik Allvin provides an update on Filip Hronek: pic.twitter.com/qKvHAeQnRO
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 3, 2024
The Czechia-born player hasn’t played since hurting himself late in a loss against the Pittsburgh Penguins on November 27. It was widely assumed he was dealing with just a shoulder injury, but the Canucks statement today shows he was also struggling with a lower-body issue.
He has nine points in 21 games this season and has been stapled to captain Quinn Hughes’ defence pair.
Canucks insider and host of Down to Irf Irfaan Gaffar clarified that the player will be out until the end of January at the minimum.
End of January minimum for Hronek. https://t.co/SaxO4nhEO3
— Irfaan Gaffar (@irfgaffar) December 3, 2024
The defenceman’s absence leaves a huge hole in the lineup. He’s one of their most-used players in all situations and provides a unique boost of offensive skill on the blue line.
The Canucks called up right-handed blueliner Mark Friedman to help, and Noah Juulsen has also slotted into the lineup in recent games.
While the Canucks have won the two games since he was injured, the team’s defence now looks very thin and it’s possible they could look to bolster their roster in a trade. Several intriguing players could be on the move before this year’s deadline that the Pacific Division team might target.
The Canucks managed to have their stars largely avoid injury last season. They haven’t been as lucky this year. Not only is Hronek set to miss a significant amount of time, but Thatcher Demko has yet to play, Brock Boeser missed games with a head injury, and J.T. Miller has been away on personal leave.
Despite all of the health issues thus far, the Canucks are still in the NHL’s top-10 teams by points percentage.