CRANBERRY TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- Mike Sullivan offered no update on Tom Kühnhackl's apparent head or neck injury after the Penguins practiced Friday afternoon, saying his fourth-line left winger was still being evaluated by team doctors.
Apparently, that evaluation wasn't what the team wanted to hear, because, just a few hours later, the Penguins recalled Dominik Simon from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
The 5-foot-11, 176-pound left winger has played in five NHL games over the previous two seasons with the Penguins, registering two assists. In 20 AHL games this season, Simon has a team-high 13 assists and 16 points. He will likely slide into Kühnhackl's spot on the fourth line beginning with Saturday night's game against the Maple Leafs at PPG Paints Arena.
Kühnhackl left Thursday night's 4-3 overtime win over the Islanders after colliding with linemate Ryan Reaves with about 10 minutes to play in the third period. Kühnhackl immediately raced down the runway to the dressing room and did not return:
"I was just backchecking a guy who was on the wall and I didn't really see Tommy," Reaves told me Friday. "I think he just kind of went to reach for the puck maybe. I just saw him come behind the guy. I tried not to react to it so I didn't run over him too hard but, unfortunately, I think he was leaning a little too far forward and just caught my arm."
The loss of Kühnhackl is the third injury the Penguins have sustained in little more than a week after Matt Murray (right leg) and Justin Schultz (left leg) went down.
With Simon in the lineup, Reaves said the Penguins' fourth line can't deviate from what it's been doing.
"We have to stick to our game plan and make sure we're playing responsible in the D zone and grinding out in the offensive zone," Reaves said. "Whoever is coming in, we just have to make sure we're playing responsibly."
The Penguins also reassigned Greg McKegg to Wilkes-Barre after he cleared waivers.