Some pretty big injury news around the NHL today, as the Boston Bruins and Pittsburgh Penguins learned they will be without some key players for at least the next month. In Boston, the Bruins will be without their top playmaker, center Marc Savard, for the next four-to-six weeks because of broken left foot, which comes just two days after power forward Milan Lucic had surgery on a broken finger, which will also sideline him for more than a month.
Savard has seven points (four goals, three assists) in Boston's first seven games, and led the team in scoring a season ago with 88 points. One of the best playmaking centers in the league, this is obviously a huge blow to a Boston team that has been off to a slow start, losing four of its first seven games.
Meanwhile, in Pittsburgh, the Penguins lost defenseman Sergei Gonchar in Tuesday's 5-1 thrashing of St. Louis to an undisclosed injury. Early reports seem to indicate that it's a broken bone near his hand, and Rob Rossi of the Tribune-Review reported Wednesday morning that the players have been informed he'll be out at least a month.
Gonchar missed 57 games a season ago and it proved to be a costly loss as the team struggled at times in his absence, particularly on the power play. The emergence of youngsters Alex Goligoski and Kris Letang should help to soften the blow this time around, while the team also has veteran Martin Skoula waiting for his first opportunity this year.
