Ottawa Senators young forward Josh Norris opted against getting surgery on his injured shoulder earlier in the season, but he may well be regretting that decision now. After returning to the Senators in mid-January, his first taste of game action since October, Norris featured in three games from Jan. 18-21. It seems he re-injured his shoulder injury during his brief return to the lineup, as the Senators announced on Monday that Norris would require season-ending surgery.

Via the Senators on Twitter:

ā€œSens GM Pierre Dorion announced this morning that forward Josh Norris will undergo shoulder surgery on a soon-to-be-determined date and that his 2022-23 season has come to an end.ā€

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While the date for Norris' procedure has not yet been set, it's understood that he won't recover in time to return during the 2022-23 NHL season. We're past the midway point of the regular season, and the Senators don't figure to be in the playoff race, barring a strong stretch run of the season. Losing Norris (again) will only make things more difficult for the Ottawa side that has largely underperformed this season, despite bringing in Alex DeBrincat and Claude Giroux during the offseason.

Norris' shoulder injury has limited him to just eight games this season. The 23-year-old has three points on the year, including two goals and one assist. In 2021-22, Norris featured in 66 games, the most of his career, and scored 35 goals alongside 20 assists, good for 55 points.

The re-injury of his shoulder injury has some fans questioning the Senators' handling of Norris' injury. The argument can be made that they rushed the 23-year-old back, and now he's paying the price, forced to undergo surgery in January.