Capitals’ Vincent Desharnais out 4-6 weeks after emergency appendectomy

The Washington Capitals announced Friday that defenseman Vincent Desharnais will be out four-to-six weeks after he underwent an emergency appendectomy on Thursday.

The 30-year-old had three assists and was plus-nine, averaging 19:25 of ice time through nine games. He signed a four-year contract with the Caps in the offseason that carries a cap hit of $4.2 million through the 2029-30 campaign.

In five NHL seasons, the 6-foot-7 defender has two goals and 27 assists for 29 points while averaging 16:09 of ice time in 227 career regular-season games with the Capitals, San Jose Sharks, Pittsburgh Penguins, Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers.

Desharnais, a native of Laval, Que., was taken by the Oilers in the seventh round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. He played parts of four seasons in the American Hockey League, where he posted five goals and 34 assists for 39 points in 122 career games.

He also spent four seasons playing college hockey with Providence. In 131 career NCAA games, he had eight goals and 21 assists for 29 points.

The Capitals are 5-4-0 with 10 points through the first nine games of the 2026-27 NHL season. They rank fifth in the Metropolitan Division and are two points back of a Wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference.

Forward Ryan Leonard leads the teams with eight points, while Alex Tuch has a team-leading five goals. Meanwhile, Dylan Strome has five assists.

Goaltender Logan Thompson is 4-3-0 with a .901 save percentage and a 2.90 goals against average in seven appearances.