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Lightning confirm Stamkos surgery, recovery window of four months

Tampa Bay Lightning v New Jersey Devils

NEWARK, NJ - FEBRUARY 26: Steven Stamkos #91 of the Tampa Bay Lightning skates against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center on February 26, 2016 in Newark, New Jersey. The Lightning shutout the Devils 4-0. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

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Update: The Tampa Bay Lightning confirmed the bad news: Steven Stamkos underwent surgery and is expected to miss about four months.
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Huge development on the Steve Stamkos front.

Per TSN, Stamkos is headed to Vail, Colorado today to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery to repair a lateral meniscus tear. That procedure is believed to include a four-month recovery window, which would keep the Bolts captain out of the lineup until mid-March -- at the earliest.

Looking at the Lightning’s schedule, that could translate into 50 man-games lost to injury.

Stamkos’ injury happened on Tuesday night, in a 4-3 win over Detroit. He scored his ninth goal of the season before exiting and, yesterday, Bolts GM Steve Yzerman confirmed the meniscus tear, saying Stamkos would be out “indefinitely.”

Stamkos has 20 points in 17 games this season.

The 26-year-old forward has a well-documented history with injuries. He missed more than half of the 2013-14 regular season with a broken leg, and almost all of last year’s playoff run while dealing with ramifications from a blood-clotting issue.