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Niklas Backstrom Injury: Minnesota Wild Goaltender Helped Off The Ice

Niklas Backstrom, goaltender for the Minnesota Wild, suffered an injury during Thursday night's shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens. No details have been released.

Mar 01, 2012; Montreal, QC, CAN; Minnesota Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom (32) lays on ice during the first period against Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Center. Mandatory Credit: Jean-Yves Ahern-US PRESSWIRE
Mar 01, 2012; Montreal, QC, CAN; Minnesota Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom (32) lays on ice during the first period against Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Center. Mandatory Credit: Jean-Yves Ahern-US PRESSWIRE

Minnesota Wild goaltender Niklas Backstrom may not be the best goalie in the NHL, but he's a pretty important piece for the Wild. Unfortunately it looks the goalie could be out for awhile after suffering an apparent leg injury in Thursday night's loss to the Montreal Canadiens.

It's unclear what the extent of the injury is and will probably be termed a "lower body injury" for the time being, but NHL.com's short blurb on the situation doesn't make things sound promising.

Just 2:52 into the game, Backstrom kicked out his right leg to make a save on an Erik Cole shot and could not get back up. He had to be was helped off the ice and was replaced by backup Josh Harding after making five saves on six shots.

For now, it's probably safe to assume that Matthew Hackett will be back with the Wild in the near future ... but probably isn't worth speculating anything else just quite yet, either.

For more on the Minnesota Wild, check out Hockey Wilderness. You can check out more hockey news from around the league at SB Nation's NHL page.

Photographs by Micah Taylor, clairity, and Fibonacci Blue used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.