The Anaheim Ducks announced this morning that Troy Terry underwent surgery on June 9 for a hip impingement and a labral tear, with a complete recovery expected in five to six months.
That timeline puts his return firmly in late November or December, well into the 2026–27 regular season.
“Injury Update: On June 9, Troy Terry underwent successful surgery to treat a labral tear and hip impingement. He’s started the recovery process and should be completely healed in 5-6 months.
– ducks from Anaheim
It is not a minor lack. Terry completed the regular season with 57 points in 61 games, including 19 goals and 38 assists, and has a $7 million cap hit.
He also contributed 11 points in 12 playoff games, scoring 3 goals and dishing out 8 assists as the Ducks advanced to the postseason.
Those are top-six numbers at top-six cash. The sort of thing that can surreptitiously derail a team’s early standing is missing him for the first two months of a season.
The labral tear and hip impingement are not a soft tissue modification. This is a structural repair, the sort of operation where there is a precise and set recovery period. Consider it to be like changing a load-bearing beam during the course of construction: without putting the entire wall at risk, you don’t speed things up.
Terry’s absence poses early-season depth concerns for the Ducks.
Anaheim ended with a record of 43-33-6 and 92 points, therefore this is no longer a squad that is quietly tanking. Now, they have hopes.
Pat Verbeek, the GM, will likely have to address the lack of forward depth in the top six while Terry is recovering, since Joel Quenneville, the head coach, will need it.
Terry’s $7 million regular-season cap hit is a big commitment for a player who might not play in the new year’s first game.
He also had two short-handed goals and two short-handed assists this year, making him a special teams player that is difficult to replace from the depth chart.
So the offensive talent is there at the top of the line-up, as Cutter Gauthier scored 41 goals and 69 points in 76 games over the regular season.
Without Terry, the second line, though, struggles with its output. Even with the upside of this group, backfilling 57 points of output with internal alternatives is a lot to ask.
Rehabilitation has already started, according to the Ducks, and the surgery was successful.
The good news is that. The question going into the offseason is whether Verbeek will move to add a top-six piece for a short time, or whether he will stick with what he has and trust the young depth to take on the minutes.
There is no option that is risk-free.
Terry’s offseason has grown much longer than anticipated.
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