NHL champions lose top-scoring defender for four months

Czech defenseman Frantisek Kaberle, last season's top scoring defender for Stanley Cup champion Carolina, will be sidelined for at least four months after undergoing shoulder surgery. The National Hockey League club announced Monday that Kaberle will not return until January at the earliest. Kaberle, 32, scored six goals and a career-best 38 assists in 77 games and was crucial to the Hurricanes' title run, scoring four goals and adding nine assists in 25 playoff games.