IRVINE >> There was an obvious and major level of concern among the Ducks when an injured Jamie Drysdale left the ice in the second period on Friday at Vegas and did not return.

Those worries were confirmed over the weekend with the news that the defenseman would require surgery on his left shoulder to repair a torn labrum, keeping him out anywhere from four to six months, according to the Ducks’ announcement on Monday.

“For our team, that is a massive blow,” Ducks coach Dallas Eakins said after practice on Monday. “That kid is a big part of our team, especially our back end. His last three or four games had really started to turn it up a notch.

“No. 1, it’s devastating for our team and that’s where we’re going to have to have other people step up and take those extra minutes.

“For Jamie, individually, this is going to be a young man we’re going to have to keep a really close eye on. He’s a hockey nerd. He loves to play. He loves to compete. He thinks about the game every day and now to have to go through this process of not only getting things fixed but then going through the rehab, the re-strengthening and then getting ready to play again. That can be mentally exhausting sometimes.”

Drysdale left the game after taking a hit from the Golden Knights’ William Carrier in a play along the boards behind the Ducks’ net. “He’s a really strong kid,” Eakins said of Drysdale. “For that to happen on a nothing play is mindboggling. He can take 1,000 of those in a row and that wouldn’t happen.”

It is a significant loss anytime a team is without a top-four defenseman for months on end, let alone a 20-year-old who is still emerging and finding his way in his second full NHL season. Drysdale, taken sixth in the 2020 NHL draft, already has played 113 games in the league. Two other members of that class have played more games – No. 1 pick Alexis Lafreniere of the New York Rangers (145) and No. 3 Tim Stutzle of the Ottawa Senators (140). Only one other defenseman taken in the 2020 draft has played more than 50 games: Braden Schneider of the Rangers with 53.

Part of Drysdale’s advanced development is his skill set and another is the state of the Ducks, a franchise in transition looking to rebuild around a handful of elite prospects. Drysdale’s career TOI (time on ice) average was just under 20 minutes (19:40).

“From a team perspective, we’ve got to rely on our depth,” defenseman Cam Fowler said. “It’s the next-man-up mentality, which we’ve always done a good job of. But personally, I just wish him the best for a speedy recovery. My heart goes out to him.”

The short-term adjustment that the Ducks made in Drysdale’s absence was to go with an 11-forward, seven-defensemen lineup against Toronto, a 4-3 win in overtime on Sunday. Of note, they used that similar alignment in the game in which Drysdale was injured. Playing the biggest minutes against the Maple Leafs were John Klingberg, who logged 26:35, a season-high, and Dmitry Kulikov (22:23). Two defensemen came in under 10 minutes - Nathan Beaulieu (9:17) and Colton White (6:31).

Roster moves

The Ducks called up Glenn Gawdin from their AHL affiliate in San Diego, and, in a corresponding move, sent rookie forward Pavol Regenda to the Gulls. Gawdin had six points (three goals, three assists) in seven games with the Gulls, while Regenda had been a healthy scratch the past three games with the Ducks.

“He (Regenda) has played very well,” Eakins said. “He’s been a great surprise. He just needs to fine tune a few things. I think he’s got a very bright future ahead of him. The other thing that works against those guys - and it’s not their fault - when you’re in a funk like we were in, that’s not his job to get us out of it. It’s not (Brett) Leason’s job to get us out of it. It’s the guys that have been in this dressing room, especially veteran guys, to do that. I had no interest in having him in the lineup when things weren’t steady.”