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Roberto Luongo suffers ‘lower-body injury’ Sunday against Jets

Dallas Stars v Vancouver Canucks

VANCOUVER, BC - NOVEMBER 17: Roberto Luongo #1 of the Vancouver Canucks watches a replay while facing the Dallas Stars at Rogers Arena on November 17, 2013 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Ben Nelms/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Roberto Luongo

Ben Nelms

Vancouver Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo left Sunday’s game against the Winnipeg Jets, however his status over a longer term remains unknown at this point.

Luongo left the game late in the first period and went to the dressing room, but did not return. Back-up netminder Eddie Lack finished off the night, recording the win as the Canucks defeated the Jets 2-1 at Rogers Arena.

According to numerous reports out of Vancouver, Luongo, 34, suffered a lower-body injury and is day-to-day, as per head coach John Tortorella.

There had been talk earlier in the evening that perhaps Luongo had suffered a groin injury, although that was not confirmed afterward. He’s dealt with those types of injuries before in his career, missing 24 games in the 2008-09 season.

This development calls into question not only the goaltending plans of the Canucks, but also Canada’s men’s Olympic hockey team.

Luongo was the winning goalie when Canada claimed gold at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, and was in the running to be on the 2014 squad in Sochi.

With Luongo out, the Canucks turned to 25-year-old Lack, who is in his first NHL season. He so far has a record of 6-2-0 in 11 games, to go along with a .928 save percentage and 1.93 goals-against average.

“If it’s Lack that plays for us while Lu is down, we’re very confident in his play,” said Tortorella, as per the team’s Twitter account.

The Canucks don’t play again for seven days, when they’re on the road to face the Calgary Flames. The Canucks have enjoyed a December to remember, with nine wins in 11 games this month.

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