THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

VOORHEES, N.J. -- Philadelphia Flyers leading goal scorer Jeff Carter will miss three to four weeks with a broken bone in his left foot.

Carter suffered the injury off a shot from Atlanta's Clarke MacArthur in the first period of Sunday night's 3-1 Thrashers' win.

When he misses Tuesday night's game in Ottawa, Carter will end a streak of 286 consecutive games played. That's the third-longest in team history.

"Jeff's a tough kid, when he's able to come back and play, he will," general manager Paul Holmgren said. "Other guys have to pick up their socks a little bit."

Carter, who has 33 goals, is hopeful he can be back for the playoffs, which start next month.

"It's tough," Carter said. "This is what you really play all year for, down the stretch run and into the playoffs."