The Ottawa Senators were hit with a crushing injury blow to young center Josh Norris. The 23-year-old is dealing with a shoulder injury and Kyle Buskauskas of Sportsnet reports that the team is fearful that the injury will require season-ending surgery. The Senators are waiting on confirmation that Norris' shoulder injury will need to be surgically repaired, but there's a real chance the Senators will lose their star center for the year before the first month of the season is even concluded.

Norris played in each of Ottawa's first five games this season before being held out from the clash against the Dallas Stars due to his shoulder injury. Across those five games, Norris registered two points, including a goal and an assist. He averaged 19:18 of time on ice during the first four games, but was limited to just 14:32 in the win vs. the Arizona Coyotes after sustaining the shoulder injury.

The entire Senators organization will be hoping that Norris can avoid undergoing the knife and seeing his season cut short, but for now they'll have to wait and see until they get another opinion.

Norris was a goal-scoring machine for the Senators in 2021-22, registering 35 goals and 20 assists (55 points) across a total of 66 games. He has 53 goals across 130 games early on in his career, but losing the season to shoulder surgery would be a major setback for the promising center.

The Senators will provide a more distinct update on Norris' shoulder in the coming days, but the early signs don't bode well for the 23-year-old going forward. Derick Brassard was inserted into the lineup vs. the Stars and figures to hold down the fort in Norris' stead.