Just when it looked like he might challenge for the Norris Trophy this year, Victor Hedman and the Tampa Bay Lightning were delivered a huge blow Saturday night when emerging superstar defenseman Victor Hedman left the game injured after blocking a pair of shots. Well, those hoping that Hedman only suffered a “stinger” and left the game for precautionary reasons saw their hopes dashed as it was revealed today that Hedman suffered a broken finger and will have surgery Tuesday to repair it. Recovery time is expected to be 4-6 weeks.
Hedman is currently tied for the league lead in scoring for defensemen, notching seven points in five games so far. While missing 4-6 weeks won’t completely erase his chances at the Norris with strong competition from the likes of Shea Weber, Ryan Suter, Erik Karlsson and P.K. Subban it will certainly be challenging him to make up for lost time. On the bright side he is just 23 years old so he will have plenty more chances at that particular piece of hardware in years to come.