G DiPietro out for season

Mar 19, 2008 - 3:41 PM UNIONDALE, New York (Ticker) -- New York Islanders goaltender Rick DiPietro will miss the remainder of the season with a right hip injury that he tweaked during All-Star weekend in January.

The Islanders announced that DiPietro will undergo surgery on Wednesday but expect their franchise goaltender to make a full recovery and be ready for training camp in the fall.

New York suffered its sixth straight loss with a 3-1 defeat to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday and is on the verge of elimination from the playoff race. The Islanders trail the eighth-place Philadelphia Flyers by 11 points with eight games remaining.

"Rick wanted badly to be with his team until the end of the season but the decision was made with his best interests in mind," New York general manager Garth Snow said. "By having the surgery, Rick will have plenty of time to be 100 percent long before the start of Islanders training camp in September."

Prior to the start of last season, the Islanders signed DiPietro, 27, to a 15-year contract worth $67.5 million. However, this is the second straight year in which a late-season injured knocked him out of the lineup.

DiPietro missed the final seven regular-season games last year with a head injury, though he did return for the Islanders' first-round playoff series with the Buffalo Sabres. He left hip was surgically repaired after the playoffs.

This season, DiPietro posted a 26-28-7 record with three shutouts and a 2.82 goals-against average in 63 games.

"He gave everything he had to the Islanders and our fans this season and was a warrior all the way through," Snow added.