Jordan Staal Injury: Updates on Hurricanes Star's Leg and Return

Updates from Thursday, Oct. 2

The Hurricanes' official site reported bad news on Staal's injury on Thursday:

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Ron Francis, Executive Vice President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has trimmed its training camp roster by 10 players. It also was announced that center Jordan Staal has been placed on injured reserv

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Updates from Friday, Sept. 26

Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News and Observer has an update on Staal's surgery:

Updates from Thursday, Sept. 25

NHL.com's Terrell Williams has an update on Staal's status:

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Ron Francis, Executive Vice President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced center Jordan Staal will undergo surgery on Friday to repair a fractured fibula in his right leg. The procedure will be performed by Dr. Kevin Logel and Dr. Marty Isbell at Raleigh Orthopaedic and recovery time is estimated at three to four months.

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Updates from Wednesday, Sept. 24

Arash Madani of Sportsnet has an update on Staal:

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Jordan Staal ‎remains with the Carolina Hurricanes a day after breaking a bone in his right leg, but the exact prognosis will not be known until at least Thursday when Staal returns to Raleigh for X-rays and an MRI.

Hurricanes coach Bill Peters said Staal’s bone break was in the “ankle area,” but the team is awaiting further word from doctors when the club returns home following Wednesday night’s pre-season game against the New York Islanders. Staal went down in the third period against Buffalo on Tuesday on a hit by Sabres defenceman Josh Gorges.

“It’s a huge blow for us,” Peters said.

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Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News and Observer has general manager Ron Francis' thoughts:

Original Text

The worst-case scenario happened for the Carolina Hurricanes after Jordan Staal was injured in a preseason game against the Buffalo Sabres.

Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News reported that Staal took a big hit from Sabres defenseman Josh Gorges and couldn't put any pressure on his right leg as a result:

According to Michael Smith of the Hurricanes' official site, the veteran center won't return to the game:

Hurricanes.com reporter Terrell Williams had the diagnosis:

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Ron Francis, Executive Vice President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, tonight announced that center Jordan Staal suffered a broken bone in the lower portion of his right leg during the team’s preseason game against the Buffalo Sabres.

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Staal was fifth on the team in points last year with 40; his 25 assists were also third. His numbers have dropped slightly from where they were with the Pittsburgh Penguins, but the fact that he's the Hurricanes' alternate captain tells you all you need to know about his importance to the team.

Carolina's first regular-season game is on Oct. 10 against the New York Islanders, so the team has a little bit of time to let him rest if necessary.

The Hurricanes haven't made the postseason in the last five years, and in order to break that duck, they'll need a healthy Staal on the ice.