The injury woes continue for Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Robin Lehner.
Lehner is expected to miss the entire 2022-23 campaign after the team announced he will undergo hip surgery this offseason. An exact timeline for his recovery is not yet known.
The 31-year-old was limited to 44 games last season as he battled numerous injuries before having shoulder surgery in April.
Lehner posted a 23-17-2 record with a .907 save percentage and a 2.83 goals-against average in 2021-22.
The Golden Knights currently count four goalies – Lehner, Laurent Brossoit, Patrick Nolan and restricted free agent Nicolas Hague – who are on injured reserve. Michael Hutchinson, a 32-year-old NHL journeyman, is the organization’s most experienced goaltender that can be counted on at the moment.
With the news that their starting netminder will miss the entirety of next season, a difficult offseason in Las Vegas only seems to be getting worse.
Finding himself under a tight cap crunch, general manager Kelly McCrimmon has had to offload some money for little to no return, sending forward Evgeni Dadonov to Montreal for Shea Weber’s contract, and dealing goalscorer Max Pacioretty to Carolina for future considerations.
In an appearance on the Raw Knuckles podcast with former NHLers Chris Nilan and Tim Stapleton, Pacioretty voiced some displeasure with the organization he spent the last four seasons with.
“I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. When I first got (to Vegas), it was weird that there was like no accountability.” Pacioretty said. “And I’m not talking about in the team, I’m talking about like ever, you couldn’t feel pressure coming off anyone else, from the coach to the management.”
The Golden Knights missed the playoffs for the first time in franchise history last year after their inaugural season in 2017-18, when they reached the Stanley Cup Final before losing to the Washington Capitals. With an aging roster and doubts over the culture around the organization, there’s a real possibility Vegas is once again on the outside looking in, less than a year after swinging a blockbuster trade for generational superstar Jack Eichel.
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