Before the New Jersey Devils face off with the Pittsburgh Penguins for sole possession of first place in the Metropolitan Division Saturday afternoon, head coach Sheldon Keefe provided some updates on the enormous list of Devils injuries.
Perhaps Brendan Dillon’s idea to “sage the place” after Thursday’s game rubbed off with some positive news on the injury front.
Thus far, the right side of the Devils’ defense has been decimated. Top defenseman Dougie Hamilton left Thursday’s game with an undisclosed injury, following the Devils’ loss of Brett Pesce (whom TV cameras captured with a full cast on his hand in the Devils’ players’ suite). Jonathan Kovacevic is also absent, meaning the Devils’ right-handed defense group couldn’t afford another serious blow.
However, Keefe confirmed Saturday morning that Hamilton’s injury “is minor”, and that he will be out “a minimum of a week”, far from the worst-case scenario for a team that needed some sort of good injury news.
Hamilton left the second period of New Jersey’s tilt against the Montreal Canadiens, and did not return. He’s dealing with a lower-body injury.
As it does not appear Pesce will be returning for the next little while, Hamilton and the Devils certainly avoided the worst case-scenario.
Also of note, Devils forward Connor Brown’s status “is unchanged,” and while he has not played since 10/30 in San Jose, Keefe indicated that his return “is not imminent at this point”. So perhaps, Dillon might want to get some more sage handy after all.
Keefe explained that the Devils have felt Brown’s absence from the lineup “too much.” They certainly want him to return sooner than later. However, they’ve remained afloat with a 3-1-0 record since he’s been out of the lineup.
Regardless, the sooner they get him back, the better.
