The defensively challenged Blackhawks placed their starting goalie and early season MVP on injured reserve Friday afternoon, declining to disclose the nature or severity of the ailment in a brief media release. It was a surprise development after Crawford played the entirety of a 4-3 overtime loss to the Stars Thursday, stopping 31 of 35 shots.
MORE: NHL’s worst injuries in 2017-18
To take Crawford’s place, Chicago recalled Jean-Francois Berube (6-6-0, 2.56 GAA, .913 save percentage) from their AHL affiliate. He’ll back up Anton Forsberg for the time being.
Berube, who’s 6-6-0 with a .913 save percentage this season with the AHL IceHogs, was the primary subject of the Blackhawks’ announcement, which devoted a mere two sentences to Crawford. Neither Crawford nor coach Joel Quenneville indicated a possible injury following Thursday’s game, and Quenneville isn’t scheduled to address the media until Saturday’s morning skate, leaving Blackhawks followers fearing the worst about their oft-injured goalie.
The 32-year-old Crawford is 11-7-2 in 22 starts this season. His .930 save percentage ranks fourth in the NHL, a small miracle given the struggles of Chicago’s thin blueline, and any long-term absence would be cause for panic for a team that entered Friday in fifth place (12-9-4, 28 points).
A series of medical issues have limited Crawford throughout his eight-year NHL career, most recently an emergency appendectomy Dec. 2, 2016, that kept him out most of December last season. He also suffered a concussion at the end of the 2015-16 season, when officials for the Blackhawks and NHL failed to remove him from a game, per protocol.
It’s too soon to paint a doom-and-gloom picture until Quenneville clears the air. But if Crawford misses more than a week or two, it could be enough to set the Blackhawks back immeasurably within a competitive Central Division.
