Sharks confirm the worst for forward Luke Kunin

The San Jose Sharks announced today that forward Luke Kunin will miss the rest of the 2022-23 season as he recovers from knee surgery.

From the Sharks' official website:

San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) General Manager Mike Grier announced today that forward Luke Kunin underwent successful surgery earlier today to repair a torn ACL. The injury, which occurred on Dec. 13 against Arizona, is expected to keep Kunin out for the remainder of the 2022-23 season.

The estimated time of recovery for injuries of this nature is approximately six-eight months.

The 25 year old forward looked to finally find a fit in the NHL with the Sharks this season, putting up five goals and 13 points in 31 games. His career high came in 2019-20 with the Minnesota Wild whhen he managed 15 goals and 31 points in 63 games. Last season he managed 13 goals and 22 points in 82 games with the Nashville Predators.

Kunin is a former 1st round pick (15th overall in 2016) who has struggled to make a real impact at the NHL level with both the Wild and the Predators, but he seemed to hit his stride this season with the Sharks. He's still under contract with the team for next season, so here's hoping he can put together a bounce back campaign and really cement himself as part of this team's core moving forward. He was acquired by the Sharks this past offseason in a trade with the Predators that saw the Preds pick up forward John Leonard and a 3rd round pick in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft.

"A high-character kid, plays the game hard, competes hard, got some really good leadership qualities," Sharks GM Mike Grier said of Kunin at the time of the trade, "so he's got a lot of things we'd like to bring into the team and the organization. I think he fits in nicely with some of the core values I have and we have in the organization."

Again, here's hoping that Kunin comes back strong next season because I feel like he has all the tools needed to be a quality NHL player.