The New Jersey Devils extended a qualifying offer to defenseman Mark Fayne today, but he might not be able to provide immediate returns on a deal once the season starts. NHL.com reports that Fayne is expected to miss three-to-four months after undergoing wrist surgery on Friday.
Fayne had the scapholunate ligament of his left wrist repaired, a procedure that is expected to sideline him for 3-4 months.
(This is the first time I’ve heard of the “scapholunate ligament,” so don’t ask me how to pronounce it.)
After playing in 57 games in 2010-11, Fayne played all 82 regular season and 24 postseason contests for the Devils this past season. He went up from an average of 17:50 minutes per game to 20:11 this season, with similar averages (20:19) in the postseason. The 25-year-old blueliner had 17 points in the regular season and three in the playoffs.
The Devils face plenty of off-season questions during the next two summers, but aside from the possible departure of Bryce Salvador, their defense is more or less spoken for. Fayne has a great chance to stick around, even if his injury sidelines him for a while.