The Winnipeg Jets will be without forward Kyle Connor for six to eight weeks because of a lower-body injury, NHL.com reported Thursday.
In Sunday’s 4-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks, Connor took a knee-on-knee hit from Ryan Strome after firing a backhand shot. Jets captain Mark Scheifele took exception and fought Strome, who was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct for the hit.
The NHL said Monday that Strome would not be suspended.
Connor, 27, the 17th overall pick by the Jets in the 2015 draft, has a team-leading 17 goals and 28 points in 26 games this season. He is tied for fourth in the league in goals.
Now in his eighth season with the Jets, Connor has 226 goals and 452 points in 492 games.
Coach Rick Bowness said Tuesday that the rest of the team will have to make up for Connor’s absence.
“(Connor) is an elite player, an elite goal-scorer,” he said, per NHL.com. “We’re not asking anyone to be Kyle Connor. That’s not realistic. What we are asking for is for our players is to make sure that every game, every shift, every period, that they’re the best version of themselves to make up for it.
“You don’t replace Kyle Connor. You think someone else is going to step in there and do that? That’s completely unrealistic. But what is within our control is for each and every player to be at their best every shift, throughout every game, and we’ll go from there.”
The Jets entered Thursday in second place in the Central Division, two points behind the first-place Colorado Avalanche. The two teams will face off Saturday in Winnipeg.
–Field Level Media