DETROIT — Coach Mike Sullivan said Friday that the Penguins still don’t have a timetable for when injured defenseman Brian Dumoulin will return to the ice.
“I can’t give you time frames at this point [for] where he’s at with respect to when he’s going on the ice,” he said before they played the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena. “All I can tell you is that I do know he’s making progress.”
Sunday marks seven weeks since Dumoulin had surgery to repair lacerated tendons in his left ankle. He suffered his injury in the first period of their Nov. 30 loss in St. Louis. He had surgery the next morning at UPMC Presbyterian. The Penguins said then that he would be out at least eight weeks.
Dumoulin arguably was their best defensive defenseman before the injury. At that point, the 6-foot-4, 207-pound blue-liner led the Penguins with a plus-17 rating, ranked third in blocked shots and was seventh in hits. He was a trusted penalty-killer. And he chipped in with 1 goal and 6 assists in 23 games.
The Penguins have continued to play well without Dumoulin and another of their top defensemen, Justin Schultz. But the play of Dumoulin’s partner, Kris Letang, has been up and down since Dumoulin was injured. Letang has recorded 3 goals and 13 points with a plus-3 rating in 20 games without Dumoulin. But in five of those games, he had a minus-2 rating.
Letang again skated with Jack Johnson Friday night in the game against the Red Wings in Detroit.
The Penguins are currently in a stretch of seven road games in 10 games overall, which means Dumoulin has been pretty isolated from his teammates and the coaching staff as he rehabilitates his injury at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex. Sullivan said the Penguins will look to reintegrate him as his return nears.
“We have people back in Pittsburgh that work with him on a daily basis as far as the rehab process is concerned,” Sullivan said. “And as he starts to get a little closer to playing, we’ll get him involved in more meetings and things of that nature so that he’s tuned in to all the details of our team game.”
Minor deal
The Penguins completed a swap of minor leaguers Friday with the Dallas Stars, acquiring defenseman John Nyberg in exchange for forward Oula Palve. Nyberg reported to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League.
Nyberg, 23, played 19 games this season for the Texas Stars of the AHL and recorded two goals and six points. He has 12 points in 63 career AHL games. The 6-3, 195-pound blue-liner was a sixth-round pick of the Stars in 2014.
The Penguins signed Palve out of Finland’s top pro league last summer in the hopes he would compete for a NHL roster spot in training camp. But the 27-year-old failed to make an impression and was sent to the AHL club.
In 37 games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, he had just 1 goal with 7 assists and a minus-20 rating. Palve was a healthy scratch in the team’s previous three games prior to being traded to the Stars, their opponent Friday night.
Another start for Murray
Matt Murray got the nod in goal Friday with the Penguins in the second half of their back-to-back. Tristan Jarry started the 4-1 loss against the Bruins Thursday night in Boston.
For Murray, it was just his fourth start since the NHL’s Christmas break. Before Friday, his game appeared to be on the upswing despite a couple of goofy goals against. In his three previous starts, he went 3-0-0 with a .916 save percentage.
Sullivan believes the extra work that the 25-year-old has been getting in recent practices with goalie coach Mike Buckley is starting to pay dividends.
“I think his complete overall game has [improved],” Sullivan said. “I think his positioning in the crease is sharper, and I think as a result his game is getting better with every start he has. So, we really like the direction he’s going.”
Around the boards
The Penguins began Friday night with the same forward lines and defensive pairs they used a night earlier in Boston. ... Sidney Crosby’s goal 24 seconds into the loss against the Bruins marked the 12th time in his career he scored in the first minute of a game. Only Mark Messier, with 13 such goals, has more in NHL history. ... Jack Johnson picked up his 300th career point Thursday.
Matt Vensel: mvensel@post-gazette.com and Twitter @mattvensel.
First Published: January 18, 2020, 12:27 a.m.
