Ex-Golden Knights forward out 6 months with torn Achilles
The start to Max Pacioretty’s Carolina Hurricanes tenure will be delayed.
The former Golden Knights left wing, who was traded with defenseman Dylan Coghlan for future considerations July 14, will undergo surgery to repair a torn Achilles, Hurricanes president and general manager Don Waddell announced Tuesday.
The procedure will be performed Wednesday by Dr. Kevin Logel at Raleigh Orthopaedic Clinic. Pacioretty is expected to recover in six months.
The news is a difficult blow to a prolific scorer who has had recent trouble staying on the ice. The 33-year-old was fourth in the NHL in goals per 60 minutes at five-on-five last season among skaters who played at least 300 minutes, behind Hart Trophy winner Auston Matthews, Filip Forsberg and Vladimir Tarasenko.
Pacioretty’s rate of production was outstanding. But his season totals — 19 goals and 18 assists — were lacking because he played in only 39 games. He broke his foot the second game of the season against Los Angeles, had wrist surgery Dec. 30 and missed nearly a month after suffering an undisclosed injury March 11 in Pittsburgh.
Overall, Pacioretty played in 224 of a possible 291 regular-season games in his four years with the Knights. He missed four of the team’s 20 playoff games in 2020 and their first six of 19 postseason games in 2021.
Pacioretty still led the Knights in goals (97) during his tenure and was second in points (194). He has 323 career goals, the 22nd-most by an American forward in NHL history.
Pacioretty has one year remaining on his contract with a $7 million cap hit. Moving his money off the books helped the Knights re-sign center Nicolas Roy and right wings Reilly Smith and Keegan Kolesar.
Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.