Kris Letang injury update: Penguins star out weeks with lower body injury

Kris Letang will miss a few weeks with a lower body injury. 

The Pittsburgh Penguins sure aren’t suffering from a Stanley Cup hangover. Entering Dec. 15, the reigning champs have the most points of any team in the NHL. They’ve done this because of some remarkable luck regarding injuries. Other than losing Sidney Crosby for a few games early in the season, Pittsburgh has been relatively healthy. They will undergo a major test, as star defenseman Kris Letang will miss the next few weeks with a lower body injury.

It’s purely speculation, but the injury likely occurred in Wednesday night’s game against the Boston Bruins. David Backes hit Letang very hard into the boards, but there was no penalty called. This could have been a retaliation hit for an earlier questionable hit by the Penguins defenseman.

Without Letang, Pittsburgh could struggle. They can overcome injuries to Malkin and Crosby as long as the other one is healthy. That’s just one of the benefits of having two top centers. However, the Penguins don’t have anyone who can take over all of Letang’s responsibilities. So replacing him will be a bit of a team effort. But they have the pieces necessary to potentially tread water without him.

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For example, reclamation project Justin Schultz has been outstanding on the power play in limited usage. He likely replaces Letang on the first power play unit. As far as replacing him at even strength, it’s far more complicated. Trevor Daley likely steps up to the first pairing, but they’ll need Olli Maatta to improve. Schultz is another first pairing option and he certainly has warranted more ice time.

Losing someone like Letang is always tough. But the Penguins have depth so they should be fine.