The Seattle Kraken have announced forward Yanni Gourde will be out 5-7 weeks after undergoing sports hernia surgery.
The Seattle Kraken have announced forward Yanni Gourde will be out 5-7 weeks after undergoing sports hernia surgery.
In a statement released on X, formerly known as Twitter, the Kraken general manager Ron Francis announced that Gourde has successfully undergone sports hernia surgery and will be out for 5-7 weeks.
The news is unfortunate for Gourde as nobody wants to see a player a miss anytime but it's very unfortunate for his chances of being traded to a contending team. The two-time Stanley Cup champion is a pending UFA and earlier reports stated that their was a large market for Gourde.
The initial reports state that Gourde will likely be out through the Mar. 7 trade deadline and could affect possible suitors mindset when considering a trade for him.
Many teams will back out but their is also a strong chance that teams aren't willing to offer the same assets they may have been considering before.
The 33-year-old has scored six goals and 16 points in 35 games this season while maintaining his defensive acumen.
The Kraken are put into a difficult dilemma as well. They have maintained their position that they would like to re-sign Gourde but if they couldn't they were willing to move him. If teams aren't interested in trading for or if the Kraken don't believe the price for him is worth moving, they run the risk of losing him for free in the offseason.
How the Kraken approach this large bump in the road could be instrumental to how the team progresses.
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