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Corey Crawford out 2-3 weeks after appendectomy

CHICAGO, IL - DECEMBER 01: Goalie Corey Crawford #50 of the Chicago Blackhawks watches the puck in the first period against the New Jersey Devils at the United Center on December 1, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Chase Agnello-Dean/NHLI via Getty Images)
Corey Crawford of the Chicago Blackhawks watches the puck in the first period against the New Jersey Devils at the United Center on December 1, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. (Getty Images)

Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford has acute appendicitis and is undergoing an appendectomy, the team announced Saturday.

“We are anticipating a full recovery and return to play,” the Blackhawks team doctor Michael Terry said through the team’s Twitter account, though he added he couldn’t give a timeline for Crawford until after the surgery. The operation is taking place in Philadelphia where the Blackhawks are playing Saturday at the Philadelphia Flyers.

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Last season, Anaheim Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf missed four games (from Oct. 27 until his return on Nov. 6) after undergoing an appendectomy. Teammate Rickard Rakell missed the last six games of the 2015-16 regular season after an appendectomy. He returned for the playoffs, but missed five games this year after he had scar tissue removed from the previous procedure.

The Blackhawks signed Eric Semborski, a 23-year-old who plays club hockey at Temple as an emergency backup to Scott Darling for Saturday. Darling, who is 5-4-0 with a 2.76 goal-against average and .909 save percentage, is likely to receive most of the workload with Crawford out.

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In 20 games this season, Crawford, a former All-Star and two-time Stanley Cup champion, has held a 2.27 goal-against average and .927 save percentage for the first-place Blackhawks. Chicago has also been without captain Jonathan Toews since Nov. 25 because of a back injury.

UPDATE: According to Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times, Crawford is expected to miss 2-3 weeks.

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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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