Penguins' defenseman Sergei Gonchar's shoulder injury, which was initially diagnosed as having a six to eight week recovery time, has taken a turn for the worse.
The Penguins originally thought that surgery would not be necessary to repair a separated shoulder that Gonchar sustained due to a pre-season check from Tampa Bay's David Koci. The original diagnosis has now turned from bad to worse, as TSN reports that Gonchar will indeed undergo surgery, and will likely miss four to six months of the upcoming season.
The Penguins' power play will undoubtedly be affected most by Gonchar's absence. He has led the team in power play points in each of the past two seasons, including finishing second in the NHL to eventual Norris Trophy Winner Nicklas Lidstrom in power play points last season.
The Penguins do boast a very deep corpse of defensemen, with five players who have proven themselves to be top-six material. Brooks Orpik, Kris Letang, Hal Gill, Rob Scuderi, Mark Eaton, and Darryl Sydor will likely be the Penguins' new top six, with rookie Alex Goligoski having a chance to prove himself worthy of a roster spot early in the season.
The Penguins shouldn't suffer much defensively, but in losing Whitney, who is expected to be out of action until late December or early January, and now Gonchar to long-term injuries, we could see a lot less offensive production coming from the Penguins' blue line.
2 comments Last one added 9 months ago — Leave a Comment
Stephen Sabo 9 months ago
Eric,
Nice article. The Penguins are deep on defense. All those who were wondering why we were paying $2.5 million to Sydor will quiet down I'm sure. There is no doubt losing Gonchar will hurt because he is such a playmaker. I think moving Malkin on the power play and the development of Kris Letang will help to fill the void. The biggest problem I see is the salary cap hit the Penguins have between Gonchar and Whitney.
Just a though...it's possible if rehabilitation goes well for Whitney and Gonchar, the Penguins can get fresh late in the season while other teams suffer from the grueling schedules when these guys return to the lineup. I refuse to make any predictions or hitch my wagons to this idea because additional injuries to key players or slower than expected recoveries are unpredictable, not to mention conditioning and mental focus. Maybe, just maybe, the Pens will get a shot in the arm down the stretch when it matters with some familiar faces on the blue line. We'll see how it turns out.
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Eric K 9 months ago
Stephen,
I was thinking along the same lines when i stated that it's better these injuries are happening now rather than in February or March. Hopefully when Whitney and Gonchar are ready to return to the lineup the Pens won't need much of a push for playoff seeding, but as you said, you just never know.
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