The Edmonton Oilers have confirmed that forward Evander Kane will be out for 3-4 months after sustaining deep cuts on his wrist in Tuesday night’s 3-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Kane was injured in the second period after colliding with Lightning player Phillipe Myers just inside the defensive zone. While on the deck, Tampa Bay forward Pat Maroon accidentally skated over Kane’s wrist and he immediately went to the bench for assistance before eventually being transported to the hospital where he had an operation.
Kane took to social media to say that he was “on the mend” following a procedure on his wrist.
Kane wrote on Twitter, “Thank you all for the kind wishes and prayers from over the past several hours. Obviously last night was an extremely scary moment for me and I’m still in a little bit of shock.
“I would like to thank the entire training staff of the Edmonton Oilers and Tampa Bay Lightning, along with all the doctors and paramedics who rushed to help treat and repair my injury. Without all of you, I know things would’ve been much worse and I’m sincerely grateful.
“I won’t be back next game, but I will be back and I look forward to being back on the ice playing the game I love alongside my teammates in front of our great fans.”
Maroon – who accidentally caused the injury – said after the game on Tuesday, “I hope he’s OK. When you look down and you see that much blood, you know there’s something wrong. Obviously, the boys are really worried about him. It’s a scary situation. You never wish that upon any player in the League.”
After being released by the San Jose Sharks last season, Kane joined the Edmonton Oilers on a four-year deal worth $20.5 million. In 13 games this season, he has scored five goals and given eight assists.
On Wednesday, the Oilers announced that Kane had been placed on the long-term injured reserve. They called up forwards Mattias Janmark and Klim Kostin from their American Hockey League affiliate Bakersfield Condors.