Thank God we have a competent #1 goalie...

Because the Goalie of Tomorrow is fast becoming the Goalie of Yesterday.

Per the Blueland Blog:

Kari Lehtonen underwent successful back surgery on Friday, Oct. 30 at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, NY. The procedure, which was performed by neurosurgeon, Dr. Paul Maurer, was to remove edges of bone that were applying pressure to nerve roots in his back at two locations that were different than that of his original disc surgery on July 20. He will be sidelined for 6-8 weeks.

That puts him coming back probably the beginning of January, not counting conditioning and workout time (he's not in shape, trust me), plus a rehab stint in Chicago. By the time all that is taken into consideration, we're looking at post-Olympic break.

Pavs has been our #1 so far, and he *will be* our #1 by February - he's not going anywhere at all. What do we do with Kari? It seems he'll be healthy in time for the trade deadline, but would anyone want him?

Heck, with his injuries, will he ever play in the league again? So much talent, but so much wasted opportunity.