"He's had a second opinion. He's expected to have surgery next week," Fenton said. "We don't know [an exact timetable] until they get in there. I've talked to three different doctors and yes, they're giving me a general timeline for it, but I don't want to say anything that just comes back and haunts us.
"Let's just make sure first how the surgery goes and then we'll make a statement from there."
Dumba who left a 2-1 loss to the Calgary Flames on Saturday with 1:33 remaining in the first period, leads NHL defensemen with 12 goals. His 22 points and 23:23 average ice time in 32 games are second among Wild defensemen to Ryan Suter, who has 26 points (four goals, 22 assists) and is averaging 25:47 in 32 games.
"We were hoping that it was going to be a quick thing to go through things but from talking to doctors, he does need surgery," Fenton said. "But for those that have had surgery and they say it's going to be six months and you're walking three months later, that's what we're kind of hoping for is that he gets something taken care of and maybe it's quicker."
The Wild (17-15-2) host the Dallas Stars at Xcel Energy Center on Saturday (8 p.m. ET; FS-N, FS-SW+, KTXA, NHL.TV).
"It really hurts, there's no question," Fenton said. "I was really glad at the way our defense was playing. We had balance on there. But now we've got some guys that have to get used to [new partners], get continuity and become acclimated."
