Niedermayer Out 3-4 Weeks

Mighty Duck captain Scott Niedermayer underwent arthroscopic surgery to remove torn cartilage in his right knee Monday and is expected to miss the next three to four weeks.

Team physician Ronald Glousman performed the scheduled procedure at Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic in Los Angeles. The operation removed a torn medial meniscus which had bothered the All-Star defenseman for two months.

Niedermayer continued to play on the damaged knee but decided on surgery last week after declining to play for Canada in the Winter Olympics. Barring complications, Niedermayer could return in mid-March and miss only a handful of games because of the two-week NHL break for the Games.

In his first season with the Ducks after signing a four-year, $27-million contract last August, Niedermayer is the team’s third-leading scorer with 42 points and averages a team-leading 25 minutes and 31 seconds of ice time.

*

Rookie center Zenon Konopka continues to struggle with a high ankle sprain that has made him unavailable for the last 13 games. Konopka injured his right ankle Jan. 16 when he crashed into the end boards after a goal by Boston’s Marco Sturm.

Konopka said he still feels pain in the ankle but hopes he will be able to skate soon and play a few games during the break with the team’s minor-league affiliate in Portland, Maine.

“It’s getting a little better,” Konopka said. “Hopefully, I can finally get on some kind of program.”