WASHINGTON -- The Penguins sent Jason Zucker back to Pittsburgh for further evaluation, Mike Sullivan said after Wednesday's practice.
Zucker suffered a lower-body injury in Tuesday's game after his skate caught on the skate of Nick Jensen, sending him flying into the boards. He was helped by two teammates off the ice, and didn't appear to be putting any weight on one of his legs.
"He's a tough kid," Sullivan said of Zucker's mindset. "He's an up-beat person. Obviously he was frustrated with the injury, it was just kind of an unfortunate circumstance how he went into the boards. Hopefully we'll get good news with respect to his injury, but Zuck is a real resilient guy. He's a good pro, he understands the game. Regardless of what kind of news we get, we know he's going to work his tail off to get back as soon as he can."
"He's a great guy," Cody Ceci said. "He works hard, and he's really good in the locker room. We're definitely going to miss him in the lineup for a little bit."
"A big loss for us," Teddy Blueger said. "Zuck's an important player for our team."
"Losing a guy like Zuck is a pretty big blow," said Zach Aston-Reese. "He's a guy that leads by example, it's crazy. He's 28, but his presence feels like such an older presence and gives a lot of guys confidence. He will be missed, greatly. He does a lot for the team."
Aston-Reese was elevated from the third line to the second line alongside Evgeni Malkin and Bryan Rust after Zucker left the game, and that's where he took line rushes in Wednesday's practice.
"Playing with Malkin is always a little bit different," Aston-Reese said. "He's such a skilled player, he makes a lot of things happen. Maybe instead of dumping the puck in you try to make the play, he's usually flying through the neutral zone or supporting on the wall in the D-zone, looking for the puck. ... I played with 'G' before, and playing with Rusty, it's just a matter of finding good scoring areas and quiet areas on the ice and getting open for those guys."
The third line has had success this season, especially since Aston-Reese returned from injury. When Aston-Reese stepped up to the second line last game, Sam Lafferty filled in on the third line in his place. Blueger sounded confident that the third line can continue to play the way they have if Aston-Reese continues to play on the second line.
"Obviously we've played well together," Blueger said. "We know each other well, so we've developed good chemistry. But lines change all the time, throughout the course of the game, throughout the course of the year."
Sullivan said that they have other options to replace Zucker on the second line as well. It'll be a big opportunity for whoever plays on that line.
"We're just going to do our best to try to create the balance that we need and put the best lineup on the ice that gives us our best chance to win," Sullivan said. "We've always had a next-man-up attitude, and we believe we have enough to win regardless of who is in our lineup. Now the onus is on all of us to make sure that we play a game that gives us the best chance to be successful. It provides opportunities for others to step up, play a more significant role, play more significant minutes, and they've got to try to seize those moments."
MORE FROM PRACTICE
• Practice was closed to the media due to local building regulations, so I can't tell you anything that happened on the ice other than what Sullivan or players disclosed.
• Jared McCann skated in a non-contact jersey. He also skated in a non-contact jersey in Tuesday's optional morning skate.
• Juuso Riikola was a full participant in practice.
• Brian Dumoulin and Evan Rodrigues skated with skills coach Ty Hennes back in Pittsburgh.
• Sullivan didn't mention Kris Letang when running down the injury report, so it sounds like he's fine after Sullivan said an injury was the reason he didn't play most of the second half of the third period yesterday, but returned for overtime.
• The Penguins claimed right-handed defenseman Mark Friedman off waivers from the Flyers on Wednesday, more on that here.