Kilkenny goalkeeper Eoin Murphy will not feature in the Leinster Hurling Championship due to injury.
The Cats were waiting on the results of a scan following a knee injury Murphy suffered playing for his club Glenmore two weeks ago.
Boss Brian Cody said: "It’s wait and see with him, [he'll be unavailable for] seven, eight weeks. Leinster [championship] is out.
"He had a great year last year and before last year too. He’s a top goalkeeper. He’s not playing so we have two other goalkeepers now, Darren Brennan and Richie Reid, and we’d have a lot of confidence in them."
Cillian Buckley, James Maher, Conor Delaney and Rob Lennon have also been ruled out of the opening game against Dublin next Saturday.
Speaking before the news was confirmed, former Kilkenny defender Jackie Tyrrell said Murphy's loss would be a major blow.
"He’s so important to Kilkenny because he sets the tempo with is puck-outs, his free-taking ability, organising his defence and the the scary thing with Eoin Murphy is when you see him one-on-one with a forward you expect him to save it," he told RTÉ Sport.
"That’s the standard he has set in goalkeeping. It’s crazy."
