Lovejoy Suffers Broken Wrist
PITTSBURGH (93-7 The FAN) — Penguins defenseman Ben Lovejoy broke his left wrist after going hard into the boards Thursday night at San Jose.
Head coach Dan Bylsma said after the game that there's no immediate timetable for Lovejoy's return, but it's likely he'll miss a few weeks. Lovejoy joins Zbynek Michalek (broken finger) as defensemen out with injuries.
The Penguins called up defenseman Alexandre Picard from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for defensive depth on this California road trip and it now appears he'll jump in and start Saturday night at Los Angeles. There's no word yet on if the Penguins will choose to call up another defenseman.
Easing the defensive injury report was the return of Kris Letang Thursday night, who played despite an unspecified injury. Defenseman Matt Niskanen left Thursday night's game for a period of time after a knee-on-knee collision but later returned and finished the game.
Forward Jordan Staal was held out of the San Jose game with an undisclosed leg injury. It's the second game in a row that he's missed. Staal had practiced with the team leading up to Thursday night and Bylsma said he expects Staal to play on this road trip.
There's no immediate word on whether or not Staal will play Saturday night against the Kings.
The Penguins have been without Michalek for four straight games, forward Tyler Kennedy for eight straight games and captain Sidney Crosby for the entire season.
