Perhaps it was a sign when Martin Fehervary began the year out day-to-day after taking an accidental high stick to the face from Tom Wilson. He was put on concussion protocol, and when all tests came back negative, he was cleared to play in their next game. However, he was high-sticked. Again. This time against the Minnesota Wild, leading to a chipped tooth. And then Fehervary took a slapshot to the face in their game against the Seattle Kraken at the end of January to complete his trifecta of facial injuries within the span of a month.

And then it looked like he was out of the woods for a while, before his luck, or lack thereof, with injuries reared its head again towards the end of the season. During their game against the New York Islanders on April 15, he suffered an injury to his right knee, which was initially presumed to be an ankle injury. And now the Washington Capitals have posted a major injury update on X about their star defenseman, offering more clarity.

“Washington Capitals defenseman Martin Fehervary sustained an injury to his right knee during the April 15 game against the New York Islanders. Fehervary underwent a successful surgical procedure yesterday to repair the meniscus and will miss the rest of the playoffs,” read the tweet.

It was revealed that yesterday, he underwent a surgical procedure to repair his meniscus and will miss the rest of the playoffs. The news came out of nowhere for the Capitals fans, who were shocked to hear this, considering meniscus repairs can take 6-9 months to fully heal. Despite the Capitals getting off to a winning start in the playoffs, the fans’ excitement was somewhat tempered by this injury update.

Fans are dealt a disappointing blow as Martin Fehervary is ruled out for the playoffs

One fan expressed his sadness over Fehervary missing the remaining games, saying, “That’s brutal but AA was looking solid last night. Hopefully he takes the chance and proves himself.” The fan talked about Alexander Alexeyev, who played in the Capitals’ 2-3 win over the Canadiens in Game 1 of the playoffs. With Alexeyev emerging as a key player with Fehervary out, fans will hope that he refrains from making risky plays like his cross check on Brendan Gallagher’s face last night, which he was lucky to get away with.

Another section of the fans wished Fehervary a speedy recovery, without focusing on the playoffs.“Get better soon,” was a common refrain amidst the frustration of losing out on him at such a key moment. With Fehervary’s return out of the question, fans directed their hopes towards a successful recovery and good performances from the team. “Hope everything heals good as new. Step up boys….” the fan wrote, willing the Caps to not crumble in his absence.

Even as Martin Fehervary remains one of the Capitals’ key defensemen, the team isn’t without options in this department. Another fan pointed to Alexander Alexeyev as well. The fan wrote, “Glad we have Alexeyev tho that’s like the biggest deal we can have that we still have good coverage on so hopefully we’ll be alright.” He has been with the Capitals since 2018 and has become an important replacement in the lineup. Lastly, a fan was left disappointed after coming to terms with the extent of Fehervary’s injury. “Well, that sucks. Heal quickly, Marty. You’re an important part of this team,” the comment read, emphasizing his importance.

Despite this setback, the Capitals continued their dominant form this season and defeated the Canadiens in a thrilling game yesterday, despite a late-period surge fueled by two goals from Cole Caulfield and Nick Suzuki. Game 2 between the Capitals and the Canadiens takes place tomorrow, and they would hope to continue their winning ways.