VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA (AP) - Vancouver Canucks center Ryan Kesler has had hip surgery, the team said on Tuesday.
The Selke Trophy winner is expected to make a full recovery in 10 to 12 weeks.
Kesler had a career-high 41 goals and added 32 assists in 82 games with the Canucks, who lost to the Bruins in the Stanley Cup finals. In 25 playoff games, he added seven goals and 12 assists.
Kesler needed the operation to repair his labrum, which is a type of cartilage that surrounds the socket of ball-and-socket joints. It helps to provide stability to the joint while allowing flexibility and motion.
“After consultation with our team physicians following the playoffs, it was deemed that Ryan would require a procedure on his hip,” GM Mike Gillis said.
“We expect a full recovery and determined this procedure would best serve both Ryan and the team’s long-term goals.”
Kesler, a Michigan native, also had surgery to repair a torn hip labrum in late January 2007, and was expected then to be out 12 to 16 weeks, but returned just 10 weeks later for the first game of the playoffs.
The 26-year-old Kesler, a 2010 U.S. Olympian, got hurt in the final game of the Western Conference final against San Jose and limped off the ice.
He returned to score the tying goal late in the game, and played all seven games against Boston in the Stanley Cup finals. But he wasn’t the same, getting just one assist against the Bruins after seven goals and 18 points during his first 18 games of the playoffs.
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