Blackhawks captain Nick Foligno is taking a leave of absence because of daughter's surgery

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ST. LOUIS (AP) — Blackhawks captain Nick Foligno is taking a leave of absence because his 12-year-old daughter is having follow-up surgery related to her congenital heart disease.

The team made the announcement on Wednesday. The organization had no further comment.

Foligno, who turns 38 on Oct. 31, is in his third season with Chicago. The forward has no goals and two assists in four games.

“He’s a great, elite leader. He’s an extension of the coaching staff,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “And, so, now I think we have other guys in the room that can help pick it up. It’s like, as if he was injured, just next man up has to do the job.”

Playing without Foligno for the first time this season, Chicago rolled to an 8-3 victory at St. Louis on Wednesday night.

“We’re obviously praying for him and his family and everything that’s going on, and that one was for him and them,” forward Frank Nazar said. "And, really, it’s obviously something that us as a group talked about before and after the game, and we wanted to go out there and play for them.”

Foligno became the 35th captain of the Original Six team in September 2024. His father, Mike, played in the NHL for 15 years, and his brother, Marcus, plays for Minnesota.

Nick Foligno broke into the league with the Ottawa Senators in 2007. He has 247 goals and 352 assists in 1,237 regular-season games, also playing for Columbus, Boston and Toronto.

Foligno's daughter, Milana, turned 12 on Tuesday. He also has two sons — Landon and Hudson — with his wife, Janelle.

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