Winnipeg Jets star forward Kyle Connor could be out for 6-8 weeks as a result of a knee-on-knee hit by Anaheim Ducks' Ryan Strome on Sunday night in California.

“Kyle Connor’s knee injury is hopefully a 6-8 week recovery timeline,” reported The Winnipeg News' Mike McIntyre. “However, there’s still some further evaluation pending which could alter that. Will get official update from Rick Bowness in about an hour following AM skate.”

The play itself occurred at the 27-second mark of the second period between the Jets and Ducks. Strome looked to try to deliver a shoulder check on Connor, but instead caught him with a brutal knee that caused the injury.

Connor remained on the ice for minutes clutching at his right knee, and was eventually helped to the bench by teammates Nikolaj Ehlers and Josh Morrissey. The former No. 17 overall pick in the 2015 NHL Draft did not return, and had an MRI on Monday in San Jose.

The play lit a fire under the Jets, who scored four unanswered goals in the third period to beat the Ducks 4-2. It vaulted the team into first place in the Central Division — with the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars too close for comfort — and it will be a team effort to continue that kind of success without the club's best offensive player.

No supplemental discipline for Ryan Strome

Somewhat surprisingly, the National Hockey League's Department of Player Safety will not levy any supplemental discipline against Strome for the questionable play. He was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct following a review.

“Except in rare cases, it has been the policy of the Department of Player Safety since its inception in 2011 not to comment on plays for which it does not assess supplemental discipline,” an NHL spokesperson told Canadian outlet Global News via email.

Jets coach Rick Bowness was not at all happy with the hit afterwards.

“He sticks his knee out. You hope that's a suspendable knee-on-knee. There's no other way of looking at it,” Bowness said. “But the referees made the right call. Five-minute major and a game misconduct and then we'll see where it goes from there.”

Certainly, the next time the Jets and Ducks play — on the fifth day of 2024 — will be a game to keep an eye on. Winnipeg continues their final road trip before Christmas on Tuesday night against the Sharks.