Not the best news to get just under one month away from the first set of preseason NHL games as the Chicago Blackhawks will be without newest goaltender Laurent Brossoit after undergoing successful surgery on his right meniscus. The team announced on Wednesday afternoon that Brossoit will be out for the next 5-7 weeks, meaning he is likely to miss most or all of training camp.

The NHL preseason schedule for the Blackhawks begins with a September 25 home game against the Detroit Red Wings, but Brossoit will be at least one week away from his return at that point, based on the expected timeline. Brossoit, 31, signed a two-year contract with the Blackhawks this July as a free agent with a $3.3M AAV on the deal after playing 23 games with the Winnipeg Jets last season, posting a .927 save-percentage, 2.00 GAA, and a 15-5-2 record. In his NHL career, Brossoit has played primarily as a backup and holds a .911 save-percentage and 2.64 GAA career-average.

With the injury, Arvid Söderblom will very likely go back up the goaltending depth chart in Chicago to reassume the backup role behind Petr Mrazek that he held last season, and will likely open up more opportunities in training camp and the preseason for second-year pro Drew Commesso and minor-league goaltenders Mitchell Weeks and Ben Gaudreau.

The Blackhawks open the regular season on the road on October 8, taking on the Utah Hockey Club in their first-ever NHL game.