Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara will miss four to six weeks because of a tear of the posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee on Thursday night.
The defenseman was injured in the first period of his team’s 3-2 loss to the New York Islanders.
General manager Peter Chiarelli said surgery is not expected at this time.
“This is completely different, isolated from other ligaments that are more critical of the maneuvering of the knee,” Chiarelli said Friday. “So the good news is it’s isolated to that.”
The Bruins recalled defensemen Zach Trotman and Joseph Morrow from Providence of the American Hockey League to make up for the loss. Boston also is missing defenseman Kevan Miller, who is out indefinitely with a shoulder injury.
Chiarelli said the injury occurred when Chara hit Islanders center John Tavares with 8:44 left in the first period. Chara finished his shift and left the ice with 8:12 remaining in the period and did not return to the game.
Chara, 37, has missed 20 games since joining Boston in 2006. The Bruins are 8-7-5 without him. He leads the Bruins with an average ice time of 21:41 per game this season, and has led the Boston in average ice time in each of his nine seasons with the Bruins.
Chara signed with the Bruins in 2006, and in 611 games he has 106 goals, 346 points and a plus-138 rating. He won the Norris Trophy in 2009 and captained the Bruins to the Stanley Cup in 2011.
“He’s an irreplaceable player,” Bruins forward Chris Kelly said Thursday. “So obviously him not being out there, everyone notices, us and them.”
Boston defenseman Dennis Seidenberg added, “He’s the heart and soul of this team, and whatever it is, hopefully he’s back soon.”
The Bruins will bring seven defensemen with them on the road for a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.
Morrow and Trotman joined the team in Boston on Friday for practice at TD Garden and will travel with the Bruins to Toronto.
Morrow has skated in five games with Providence this season with one goal and one assist. Last year, Morrow skated in 56 games with Providence and scored six goals and notched 23 assist for a total of 29 points. He also played in 12 playoff games with Providence and had four goals and seven assists. The 6-foot-1, 206-pound native of Edmonton, Alberta was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2011 draft.
Trotman has skated in five games with Providence this season, notching one assist. Last season, Trotman played in 53 games for Providence, earning eight goals and 16 assists for 24 total points. He also played in eight playoff games with Providence and had four assists. The 6-3, 219-pound native of Noblesville, Ind., was drafted by the Bruins in the seventh round of the 2010 draft.