Roenick Might Sit Out Rest of Regular Season

Philadelphia Flyer center Jeremy Roenick could be sidelined the rest of the regular season after breaking his jaw during Thursday night’s 2-1 victory over the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.

Roenick underwent surgery at St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York on Friday, a day after he was hit in the face with a puck, leaving him bloodied on the ice and briefly unconscious.

“He will miss significant time,” Coach Ken Hitchcock said after Friday’s practice. “I don’t think anyone knows the exact time. It’ll certainly be a lot longer than two or three weeks. We’ll see how he feels in the next week or so.”

Roenick, Philadelphia’s second-leading scorer, was hurt early in the third period when a puck struck him on a shot by the Rangers’ Boris Mironov.

The Flyers, tied with Colorado for most points in the NHL (76), also lost All-Star center Keith Primeau less than a minute after Roenick was hurt.

Primeau was injured after a collision with the Rangers’ Bobby Holik. But Hitchcock said that Primeau could return for this afternoon’s home game against the Rangers.

The injuries left the Flyers with only Michal Handzus, Claude Lapointe and rookie Patrick Sharp at center. They traded center Mike Comrie to Phoenix in a deal for goaltender Sean Burke earlier in the week.

Boyd Kane was recalled from the American Hockey League’s Philadelphia Phantoms to take Roenick’s roster spot.

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Ranger forward Jaromir Jagr will sit out at least one game after straining his groin during Thursday’s loss to the Flyers.

Jagr did not accompany the team to Philadelphia for today’s game against the Flyers.

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Phoenix captain and scoring leader Shane Doan signed a three-year contract extension.

Doan has 55 points this season for the Coyotes, who are in fourth place in the Pacific Division.