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Hard-luck ‘Canes lose (another) Staal, Dwyer to injury

Edmonton Oilers v Carolina Hurricanes

RALEIGH, NC - MARCH 16: Eric Staal #12 of the Carolina Hurricanes against the Edmonton Oilers during their game at PNC Arena on March 16, 2014 in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Oilers won 2-1. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)

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Already without the services of top-six forwards Jordan Staal and Jeff Skinner, the Carolina Hurricanes were dealt another significant blow on Monday as captain Eric Staal (upper body) was ruled out of tomorrow’s game against Buffalo, along with checking winger Patrick Dwyer.

Staal, who had two points in Carolina’s first two games of the season, was injured on Saturday night against the Islanders on this Matt Martin hit from behind:

Staal, who appeared woozy on the play, left the game momentarily but returned to play parts of the second and third period before exiting for good with 11 minutes left in the final frame.

Dwyer, one of Carolina’s top penalty killers, also left Saturday’s game in the third period and didn’t return. The 31-year-old’s presence will be missed in the lineup; Dwyer scored a career-high 22 points last year for the ‘Canes and finished third among all forwards in hits, with 107.