A career threatening injury could force captain Shea Weber out of Montreal

Could the Canadiens leave captain Shea Weber unprotected in the upcoming Expansion Draft?

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 2 years ago
A career threatening injury could force captain Shea Weber out of Montreal
Yardbarker

The Montreal Canadiens are regrouping as an organization after their incredible Cinderella-style run to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1993. Though they would ultimately fall in five games to the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Habs gave a new generation of fans everywhere some pretty incredible memories that will last a lifetime. 

They've already taken care of some housekeeping procedures for next season, removing the interim tag from Dominique Ducharme, and also re-signing assistant coach Luke Richardson. But what will the 2021-22 edition of the Montreal Canadiens look like on the ice? If a recently released report is any indication, at least one major portion of the team could potentially be on their way out of Quebec. 

According to TVASports reporter Renaud Lavoie, the Canadiens may leave captain Shea Weber unprotected in next week's NHL Expansion Draft for the 32nd team, the Seattle Kraken: 


It sounds like the culprit for their reasoning is due to lingering issues with his foot/ankle injury. Recent reports indicated that Weber may be forced to miss the start of next season, and that's since advanced to the injuries being potentially career threatening. His teammates were seen skating over to comfort him following the final buzzer of last week's Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, and this situation paints a clearer reflection as to why that was. Could it indeed be the end for him? 

He missed two weeks in February of 2020 with his left foot/ankle issue, and also underwent surgery for a meniscal tear in his right knee in July 2018. And his punishing and bruising style of play certainly isn't helping things. 

The Habs captain also battled thumb injury that caused him to miss the end of the regular season during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, certainly showing his resolve in the ultimately failed quest to bring Canada it's first Cup title since the Habs did so 28 years ago. 

Should Weber ultimately be left unprotected for the Kraken, it sounds like the Canadiens are simply doing their due diligence, and would instead continue their blue line attack led by the likes of Jeff Petry, Joel Edmundson, and Ben Chiarot. Weber has five years remaining on his contract at an average annual value of $7,857,143.

Source: Twitter