The Pittsburgh Penguins announced, per head coach Mike Sullivan, that forward Jason Zucker and goaltender Tristan Jarry have been updated as day-to-day, but they are not expected to play in at least the next couple of games. Having the two players come back into the lineup would be a major step for the Pens, with Zucker increasing their forward and scoring depth, a crucial key to playoff success, and Jarry of course being their No. 1 goaltender. Although it appears neither will be able to go for the Penguins in Game 1 or 2 in New York against the Rangers, they could look to Game 3 at home on Saturday night as a return for the pair.
Zucker has dealt with his share of injuries this season, ultimately playing in just 41 of the Penguins 82 games this season, recording 17 points in the process. The veteran forward had been playing down the stretch for Pittsburgh, but he was injured early in Tuesday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers and has not played since. Jarry had been having a stellar season in net for the Penguins, posting a 2.42 goals-against average and .919 save-percentage. However, he was declared week-to-week on April 16 after last playing on April 14 against the New York Islanders, a game in which he did play the full 60 minutes.
Here are some more injury notes...
- The Minnesota Wild could be due to get a couple of key pieces in the lineup in time for their playoff series against the St. Louis Blues. As The Athletic’s Michael Russo reports, both Mats Zuccarello and Marcus Foligno practiced Sunday morning for the Wild. Zuccarello has done well to stay healthy for a majority of this season, but he has not played since April 22 after suffering a lower-body injury. Foligno, on the other hand, was injured on Friday night against the Colorado Avalanche, the Wild’s final game of the season. As encouraging as the news is, the Wild have not confirmed whether either player will be available for Game 1 on Monday night. Having both players in the lineup is crucial for the Wild, as both earned career highs in points this season, with Zuccarello ranking third on the team in points and Foligno considered one of the better two-way players in the sport.
- According to Sportsnet’s Mark Spector, Edmonton Oiler’s defenseman Darnell Nurse was on the ice practicing Sunday morning. The star defenseman had been injured in the Oilers' April 22 game against the Colorado Avalanche and has not played since. This news is definitely encouraging for Edmonton, but according to Derek Van Diest of Postmedia, Nurse was still noncommittal about whether or not he’d play in Game 1 Monday night. While much of the attention in Edmonton goes to Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, and for good reason, Nurse is an essential component for the Oilers, logging 25 minutes per night on the backend and contributing shutdown defense to go along with quality offensive production.
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