Zucker 'feeling better,' back on the ice after disappointing injury

CRANBERRY, Pa. -- There's no official prognosis for Jason Zucker's return yet.

But early signs are encouraging.

Zucker made his return from core muscle surgery in the Penguins' game in Minnesota on Thursday, and left the game in the second period after this push from behind by Kevin Fiala:

Zucker appeared to be grasping at his upper thigh/groin area after the hit, and wasn't putting any weight on his right leg as he was being helped off the ice. When a trainer later emerged from the locker room to provide an update to Mike Sullivan, it looked as if he said "groin" on the television broadcasts.

"Everyone was really disappointed for him," Teddy Blueger said of Zucker's injury. "He's playing such a good game, for him to come back in Minnesota, where he played so long. They had that nice video for him. Just an unfortunate play, to say the least. Guys were gutted for him. He was pretty disappointed too, especially right away. He had a bunch of family there."

Zucker was standing on his own in the Penguins' postgame locker room video that night, and wasn't using any kind of visible aid like crutches. He posted on Instagram on Sunday night that he was "feeling better, and hopes to be back in the lineup soon."

Sullivan said following Monday's practice that Zucker was still being evaluated, and that the team hoped to have more information on Tuesday. He said that he spoke to Zucker before practice, and that Zucker's spirits were high despite the tough luck he's had.

"His spirits were really good this morning," Sullivan said. "He's feeling better. We'll see where it goes. But he was in much better spirits. He was much more encouraged this morning when I saw him."

Just as Sullivan finished speaking in the temporary press conference room above the ice, Zucker could be seen down on the rink below. He skated without pads in a tracksuit with Ty Hennes for roughly 10 minutes before going back to the locker room.

"He's doing better," Blueger said of Zucker. "Hopefully he'll be back soon."

MORE FROM PRACTICE

• Danton Heinen, Anthony Angello, and Kasperi Kapanen all missed practice with non-COVID illnesses. Sullivan said that the team was "hopeful they'll feel better in the morning" but anticipated possibly making an emergency recall or a few in case they don't feel good enough to play.

• Filip Hallander was recalled after practice on an emergency basis, an option in the event any of the above three can't play.

• Reminder: Teams have unlimited emergency recalls from the time between the trade deadline and the end of the regular season, which are used when a team doesn't have enough healthy players to dress a full lineup. Teams are limited to four standard recalls between the trade deadline and the end of the NHL regular season. The Penguins have used two of their four. There are no limits in the postseason.

• Brock McGinn skated on his own before practice.

• With the shorthanded group of forwards, the Penguins used these lines in practice:

Jake Guentzel - Sidney Crosby - Bryan Rust
Rickard Rakell - Evgeni Malkin - Jeff Carter
Brian Boyle/Teddy Blueger/Radim Zohorna/Evan Rodrigues all rotated on one line

• The defense rotated.

• The first power play was Kris Letang, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust, Jake Guentzel

• The second power play was Mike Matheson, Marcus Pettersson, Evan Rodrigues, Jeff Carter, Rickard Rakell

• The Penguins had a lot they liked about Saturday's 3-2 loss to the league's top team, the Avalanche. They'll face the Avalanche again on Tuesday.

"One of the major things we did really well was not taking any penalties," Bruan Dumoulin said. "That's huge against a team like Colorado. I think, handling momentum shifts, we can do a better job of that. But it was a tight game, and it could have gone either way that game. We just want to come out with the better result."

• Blueger showed up to his media availability wearing the "Big Boyle" shirt:

Between that and the Mark Friedman as Lord Farquaad shirt, we've seen more than a few players walk into their availabilities wearing these. I asked Blueger about them, and apparently nobody knows where they're coming from.

"I don't know," he said with a laugh. "I think it's a secret Santa type deal. No one really knows. They just happen to be at the rink some days when we come in. So I don't know if there's any more in store, but we'll see what happens I guess."