The Pittsburgh Penguins have suffered several injuries of
late, and two more names can be added to that list. Bryan Rust and Chad Ruhwedel are both out “longer term” according to
head coach Mike Sullivan. Several Media Outlets are reporting that Ruhwedel left the
arena Tuesday night with his right arm in a sling, while Rust was on crutches
with his left foot in a walking boot.
Pittsburgh went out and added Erik Gudbranson and Chris Wideman at the trade deadline this week to address
other injuries on the blue line, but will feel the loss of Rust up front. The
hard-working forward had been playing an increased role of late and actually
ranks third on the team in even-strength goals with 15. He has added two
short-handed tallies for a career high of 17 on the year and is an integral
part of the Penguins' attack. While they obviously still have plenty of
firepower with the likes of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jake Guentzel and Phil Kessel leading the way, Rust provided a level of
versatility that is lacking elsewhere on the roster.
Losing two more players will hurt the team and it is no
guarantee that the Penguins even make the playoffs at this point. With a
quarter of the season remaining the team sits in the final wild-card spot, but
just a single point ahead of the Columbus Blue Jackets, who recently loaded up
at the deadline. Philadelphia, Buffalo and Florida are all within ten points
and chasing down the Penguins, who themselves are trying to leapfrog the
Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens in the standings. It will be a fight
right to the end in the Eastern Conference, and the Pittsburgh depth will
surely be tested now.
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