Knee injury knocks Perry out for five months

ANAHEIM, Calif. — For the first time since Corey Perry broke into the NHL as a feisty 20-year-old in 2005, the Anaheim Ducks will be without their goal-scoring right wing for a significant amount of time.

Perry is likely to be out for five months after significantly injuring his right knee during warm-ups for a preseason game.

The 2011 NHL Most Valuable Player had surgery Wednesday, Ducks general manager Bob Murray said.

Recovery time is typically at least 20 weeks, guaranteeing Perry will miss the bulk of a regular season for the first time in his career.

The 33-year-old forward tore his meniscus and injured a knee ligament during warmups at Honda Center on Monday night for a preseason game against Arizona.

Perry scored 50 goals during his MVP season, and he has scored at least 25 goals in eight of his 13 seasons in a career spent entirely in Anaheim. He has spent most of his 957 NHL games on a line with Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf, his inextricable partner ever since they were drafted nine picks apart in the first round in 2003.

Although his production declined to 17 goals and 32 assists last year, Perry’s goalscoring acumen and agitating style of play still make him an unavoidable factor in any opponent’s game plan.

He faced a challenge this season to integrate his hard-hitting, opportunistic style into Murray’s desire for the Ducks to play a speedbased game this winter, but that transition is on hold for at least a few months.