A CSN Philly report from Wednesday night, which said that Bruins center David Krejci will miss the remainder of the playoffs with a dislocated wrist, was confirmed by the team on Thursday.
The Boston Globe's Fluto Shinzawa had confirmed the story earlier in the day, citing a "source close to Krejci," who only described the situation as "brutal."
The team said that Krejci underwent surgery in Baltimore at Union Memorial Hospital after Wednesday's game and is expected to be ready for the 2010-11 preseason, after which the B's open their regular season in the Czech Republic, Krejci's home country.
NESN's Naoko Funayama reported via Twitter that "one of the top hand surgeons in the country [Dr. Thomas Graham] was [in Philadelphia on Wednesday]. [He] works out of Baltimore, which is why Krejci went there to have the surgery done."
The injury was sustained early in Wednesday's Game 3, when Zdeno Chara sent a breakout pass toward Krejci at the Bruins' defensive blue line. Flyers captain Mike Richards anticipated the play and leveled Krejci in open ice. The puck continued to the Flyers end, where Milan Lucic retrieved it and set up Miroslav Satan for the eventual game-winning goal.
Krejci, along with his aforementioned linemates, has been the leader of the B's most potent scoring line this postseason. Satan leads the team with 10 points (five goals, five assists), Krejci has four goals and four assists himself and Lucic has a goal and four assists. The goals have been timely, too, as Satan is tied for the NHL lead with three postseason game-winning goals.
There's been no word from the Bruins, but it is expected that either Brad Marchand or Trent Whitfield will fill the roster spot left vacant by Krejci. Vladimir Sobotka, who had been centering Steve Begin and Shawn Thornton on the fourth line, could move up to the third line, while Marc Savard could take over as the top center on the top power-play unit.
Defenseman Adam McQuaid also left Wednesday's game due to injury, though there's been no update yet. If he cannot play on Friday, Mark Stuart's return to the ice could be accelerated.
