Lightning Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy Undergoes Successful Procedure to Repair Herniated Disc

Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy underwent a successful microdiscectomy to repair a lumbar disc herniation on Thursday morning, vice president and general manager Julien BriseBois announced.

Vasilevskiy is expected to miss approximately the first two months of the season as he recovers and rehabs from the procedure.

The veteran goalie is entering his 10th season with the Lightning, and his sixth as the consistent starting goaltender. Vasilevskiy has had an impressive career so far, allowing just 2.52 goals against average with a save percentage of 0.919, and 65 wins in 110 playoff appearances.

The 29-year-old helped Tampa Bay reach three straight Stanley Cup Final from 2020-2022, as the franchise won championships in 2020 and 2021. In 2021, Vasilevskiy won the Conn Smythe Trophy awarded to the MVP of the playoffs. He also won the 2018 Vezina Trophy awarded to the top goalie each season.

The team has not indicated which of its three backup goalies will start in Vasilevskiy's absence.

Both Hugo Alnefelt and Matt Tomkins have each played in a preseason game. The Lightning also have Jonas Johansson on the roster.

Tampa Bay has five more preseason games before it opens the regular season with a home game against Nashville on Oct. 10.