His knee bent in the wrong direction, and not just a little. It's not irreparable, but recovery could take months, and his season might be compromised if the anterior cruciate ligament is torn.
At best, the meniscus might be torn, causing him to miss 4 to 6 weeks of activities, but given the force of the impact, I personally have little hope of receiving such good news.
In a press conference after Monday's morning practice, Martin St-Louis admitted that the team would need to rally following this significant injury. Without giving exact details, the coach mentions that it is very important.
This is a message that says so little and so much at the same time. Without commenting on a period of absence, he indicates that it will be for a long time, and no one is surprised by that.
With all the support Laine had on his knee during the morning practice, it's far from reassuring. He indeed went to join his teammates on the bench, just like Kirby Dach used to do last year.
The update shouldn't be long in coming, but in the meantime, we can only keep our fingers crossed that the diagnosis is as mild as possible, which would still mean Patrik Laine would miss several weeks of activities.