MONTREAL - The Montreal Canadiens announced on Thursday that defenseman Shea Weber will be out for an extended period of time after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery to repair a meniscal tear in his right knee. His recovery period is expected to be five to six months. The surgery was performed by orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Robert LaPrade in Vail, Colorado.

"With Shea currently rehabilitating from his March 13, 2018 left foot surgery (with recovery scheduled to take six months), it was planned by Shea and the Canadiens' medical staff to have a consultation with the orthopedic knee surgeon. This appointment was delayed due to the foot surgery. Following consultation with both Dr. Robert LaPrade and Dr. Robert Anderson, the orthopedic foot surgeon, it was agreed that a knee arthroscopy was needed. This procedure was performed on June 19 by Dr. LaPrade at the Steadman Clinic in Vail, Colorado. During the procedure, it was determined that the damage to his knee was more serious than previously anticipated and the situation required a more comprehensive procedure to repair a meniscal tear. It is important to mention that this procedure could not have been performed earlier due to his recovery to his previous foot surgery. As such, we expect a recovery period from this latest knee surgery to be five to six months, which will keep him out of action until mid-December 2018," said the Club's head physician, Dr. David Mulder.

"We were very disappointed to learn that this knee injury will extend Shea's recovery period. Unfortunately, this is out of our control and we have to fully trust the medical group in these situations. We are confident that his recovery will go as scheduled and that Shea will return to action as soon as possible," indicated Canadiens general manager, Marc Bergevin.

Due to the complexity of the situation from a medical standpoint, and to avoid any distractions, it has been decided in the best interest of the Canadiens' organization, to proceed with this announcement following the NHL Draft and the free-agency period. Shea Weber missed one game (November 9) due to a knee injury last season, and missed a total of 55 games due to a foot injury.