2 Penguins Players Out Significant Amount Of Time With Injuries

The Pittsburgh Penguins got very bad news as two of their top players will be out for a lengthy period of time due to injuries. As reported by Taylor Haase, Jason Zucker is week-to-week due to a lower-body injury while Jeff Petry will be out longer term due to an upper-body injury.

These are two big losses seeing as the Penguins are in the thick of things in the toughest division in hockey this season. They have won six games in a row, so these losses may slow that roll down a bit. But they are tied for second in the division with the Carolina Hurricanes. The Penguins are three points ahead of the New York Islanders and New York Rangers and four points ahead of the Washington Capitals who sit just outside of the playoffs. All are within striking distance if Pittsburgh starts to lose.

Zucker was playing very good hockey in a bounce-back season that has seen him score six goals and 20 points in the first 27 games of the season. It is the first time he has really started to produce offensively since joining the Penguins in the middle of the 2019-20 season. He produced 17 points in 41 games last season and 18 in the season prior in 38 games. The chemistry has been there with Evgeni Malkin and Bryan Rust this season.

Petry has played a better and more physical brand of hockey than he has in the past. He isn't counted on to be the number one defenceman in Pittsburgh which has taken a bit of pressure off of him. He has been playing on the second pair and has three goals and 12 points in 28 games. The offensive production isn't at the level it was in the later years in Montreal, but it is still a step up from his down season in 2021-22.

Both players will be missed and there are big holes to fill in the meantime. The Penguins should be fine seeing as they are playing great team hockey, but both Zucker and Petry's absences will be noticed.