Anaheim Ducks forward Teemu Selanne suffered a fractured jaw when he was hit by a puck during Wednesday's game. (Chris Carlson/Associated Press)Anaheim Ducks forward Teemu Selanne is back on the sidelines after fracturing his jaw in the team's 4-3 victory over Boston on Wednesday night.
Selanne, 39, is expected to be out anywhere from four to six weeks. The veteran Finnish sniper was playing in just his third game after missing 17 due to a fracture in his left hand.
The injury came when teammate Ryan Whitney's shot was deflected by Miroslav Satan of the Bruins and hit Selanne in the face.
"That is unfortunate for Teemu," Ducks coach Randy Carlyle told the team's website. "We all know how much he loves to play the game. Injuries are things that happen during the course of the season. I don't know how to explain it. Why does it happen to one player over another?"
Selanne has 16 goals and seven assists in 30 games this season. He's five goals away from becoming the 18th player in history to reach 600 goals in a career.
The injury puts Selanne's Olympic participation in some doubt. Along with Dallas forward Jere Lehtinen, he was selected to Finland's roster for the fifth time in his career last month.
Finland begins its Vancouver Games schedule on Feb. 17 with a Group C game against Belarus. It completes the preliminary round with games against Germany (Feb. 19) and Sweden (Feb. 21).
