Kings center Jeff Carter out after being cut by skate

After being injured by a skate blade Wednesday night, Los Angeles Kings center Jeff Carter will miss some time.

In turns out all the Los Angeles Kings may have needed was a new coach, as they are now 5-0-1 and the only NHL team without a regulation loss so far this season. But late in the first period of Wednesday night’s 5-1 home win over the Montreal Canadiens, center Jeff Carter left the game after being checked into the boards.

Carter was immediately deemed to have a lower body injury, in true NHL fashion, with further evaluation needed to hone in on the exact issue and a prognosis. That further news on Carter’s injury and status has now come, with TSN’s Bob McKenzie reporting the veteran center will miss multiple weeks after being cut by a skate blade.

Carter was checked into the boards by Canadiens defenseman Jeff Petry. It was not a dirty or overly aggressive hit, but it was sort of awkward. Upon further review, it’s clear Petry’s left skate caught Carter’s lower left leg and both guys seemed to know something was not normal.

The video is not graphic, but I’ll offer a warning anyway.

Carter led the Kings in scoring last season, with 66 points (32 goals and 34 assists). Through six games this season, he has three assists with a minus-one rating, two penalty minutes and 13 shots on goal. Among active players, the 32-year old is 10th in career goals (339) with more than 20 goals 11 times in 12 full seasons.

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Exactly how long Carter will be out is unclear, and real clarity is probably not coming with how vague NHL teams are with injuries. But “multiple weeks” surely means he’ll miss the Kings’ upcoming six-game road trip to end October, and probably a week or so into November.