Seattle Kraken goaltender Chris Driedger out seven-to-nine months after tearing ACL at IIHF Worlds
The IIHF Worlds could not have ended any worse for Seattle Kraken goaltender Chris Driedger.
During team Canada’s gold medal game in which Driedger was playing, he suffered a torn ACL in his right knee while making a save in the third period.
“The 18th shot on goal proved elusive for Driedger and Team Canada defensemen who weren’t covering the far side of the net while the Kraken goalie squared to a shot from the right point that went wide and caromed right to the stick of Mikael Granlund,” the Kraken said in a statement. “Driedger tracked the play and lunged right to make the save, reacting quicker than his teammates. But he couldn’t stop the puck.”
This clip shows the play where Driedger suffered the injury.
MIKAEL GRANLUND 💥
Granlund ties the game and it’s 1-1. #FINCAN #IIHFWorlds @leijonat @predsnhl pic.twitter.com/YnXFxmy5hJ
Canada lost the gold medal game 4-3 in overtime.
Driedger underwent surgery to repair the ACL tear Monday and is expected to be out seven-to-nine months. He’s the second Kraken player to have suffered a torn ACL. Forward Brandon Tanev underwent surgery to repair his injury after a December collision with a defenseman from the Edmonton Oilers.
In the Kraken’s inaugural season, Driedger appeared in 27 games posting a 9-14-1 record, a 2.96 goals-against average and a .899 save percentage.
After being selected in the expansion draft, he signed a three-year contract paying him an AAV of $3.5-million.
Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.