Friday afternoon, the Buffalo Sabres announced defenseman Zach Bogosian will undergo hip surgery next week, with recovery expected to take 4-6 months. Bogosian will miss the remainder of the 2017-18 season, but the team said he is expected to be ready for training camp in the fall.
Bogosian has appeared in only 18 games this season for Buffalo, notching one assist and a minus-9 in that stretch. He last played on January 9 against his former team, the Winnipeg Jets, and was placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury on January 11.
According to NHL.com’s Joe Yerdon, Bogosian sustained a lower-body injury at practice earlier this month. Yerdon said:
“Bogosian was injured when he got tangled up in a battle for a loose puck with forward Evander Kane in the corner and went down. Bogosian needed help leaving the ice and was unable to put any weight on his left leg.”
Bogosian missed 25 games earlier this season after being injured in preseason. He made his season debut on December 1.
Per the team’s release, GM Jason Botterill said Bogosian has been dealing with the hip injury since the beginning of the season, calling the news “unfortunate.”
“After consulting with our medical team,” Botterill said, “we felt that it was important to get this taken care of now so that he can be back to full strength and ready to contribute at the beginning of next season.”
The 27-year-old skated in 56 games last season for Buffalo, accruing 11 points (2-9) in that stretch.