5 day forecast
Gonchar out four to six weeks
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Penguins defenseman Sergei Gonchar will be out for four to six weeks because of a broken bone in his left wrist, coach Dan Bylsma announced this afternoon.
Gonchar apparently was injured when he was checked during the Penguins'
5-1 victory against St. Louis at Mellon Arena Tuesday night.
Kris Letang is expected to replace Gonchar on the No. 1 power-play unit. It was not immediately known whether Bylsma will reconfigure his defense pairings because of Gonchar's absence.
Gonchar has been playing with Brooks Orpik.
Gonchar has two goals and six assists in nine games to tie Sidney Crosby for second place in the team scoring race, although he owns the only negative plus-minus rating (minus-2) on the club.
He is 35 years old, and is in the final season of a five-year contract worth $25 million. Both sides have expressed interest in working out another contract, but decided recently to put off negotiations until later this season.
Gonchar missed most of the 2008-09 regular season after suffering a shoulder injury that required surgery during an exhibition game. He returned to the lineup Feb. 14, one day before Bylsma replaced Michel Therrien as coach.
First Published October 21, 2009 10:52 am
