Raffi Torres Out Minimum of Six Weeks After Suffering ACL Injury, Could Miss Up to Four Months

Raffi Torres will be sidelined to start the regular season after suffering a knee injury during Friday night’s preseason game against the Ducks.

In Torres’ first taste of game action since being suspended during the 2013 Western Conference semifinals, Torres collided awkwardly with Anaheim’s Emerson Etem during the second period in what Sharks head coach Todd McLellan called “a complete accident.”

The left winger is now dealing with issues to his anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, according to general manager Doug Wilson.

The forward will likely miss a minimum of six weeks, but the team plans to wait until the swelling goes down to see if he’ll require surgery. If Torres does go under the knife, his timetable to return will be between three and four months. That decision will be made sometime this week, according to CSN Bay Area’s Kevin Kurz.

Entering his first full season with the Sharks, San Jose re-signed Torres to a three-year, $6 million contract on June 20.