The worst is confirmed for Dougie Hamilton

As if losing to the basement dwelling San Jose Sharks wasn't bad enough for the New Jersey Devils last night at Prudential Center, they were just dealt a considerable blow on the injury front. 

Defenseman Dougie Hamilton, who is playing in the third season of a seven year contract, won't be available for the foreseeable future after undergoing successful surgery for a torn left pectoral muscle; he's been placed on Injured Reserve. 

"I have not spoken to him," New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff said Friday. "Obviously, he had surgery so he's out indefinitely and it's going to be next man up and next defenseman's opportunity here."

Needless to say, without Hamilton, the Devils are going to be forced into making adjustments. They've already called up defenseman Simon Nemec from the American Hockey League affiliate Utica Comets; he made his National Hockey League debut against the Sharks and played 22:38 and picked up a point. 

"There will be a lot of things changed because our power play units change around a little bit," Ruff said. "We'll probably give Simon a chance to be on that second unit, so there'll be a change there. Our pairs will change, obviously, with Doug going out. So, we're going to be looking to find some consistency between pairs and how we use people."

In 20 games played this season, Hamilton has scored five goals with 11 assists while averaging 20:58 of ice time. 

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