PITTSBURGH -- Bryan Rust will be out week to week with an upper-body injury for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The forward was injured in a 3-1 loss at the Tampa Bay Lightning on Dec. 6, leaving in the second period with one shot on goal in 12:03 of ice time. He did not play in a 3-1 loss to the Florida Panthers on Friday.
Rust, who began the game against Tampa Bay on the second line, has primarily played first-line right wing with center Sidney Crosby and left wing Jake Guentzel. The 31-year-old has 20 points (10 goals, 10 assists) in 22 games.
“The expectations are we have what it takes to win games and guys are going to get opportunities to play more significant roles,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said. “It’s up to them to maximize those opportunities. They should get excited about it. That’s where we’re at.
“Rather than focus on the guys that are out of the lineup, we’re trying to focus on the guys, right now, that are in the lineup.”
After missing three games with a lower-body injury from Nov. 22-25, Rust had four points (one goal, three assists) in five games. He has 336 points (154 goals, 182 assists) in 527 NHL games, winning the Stanley Cup with the Penguins in 2016 and 2017.
Pittsburgh (11-12-3) is 1-3-0 without Rust this season and 0-2-2 in its past four games. The Penguins host the Arizona Coyotes at PPG Paints Arena on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; SN-PIT, SCRIPPS, SN, TVAS).
The Penguins are also without forwards Rickard Rakell (upper body), Noel Acciari (lower body) and Matt Nieto (lower body), and defensemen Pierre-Olivier Joseph (lower body) and Chad Ruhwedel (lower body).
Rakell, usually the second-line right wing with center Evgeni Malkin, has not played since Nov. 19 and is out longer term.
Drew O'Connor practiced in Rust’s spot on the first line Sunday and Monday, with Valtteri Puustinen at right wing on the second line.
“Guys who always wanted opportunity and came here for the opportunity, they have to run with it,” president of hockey operations and general manager Kyle Dubas said. “This is their chance. We want guys to run right through the door, take it and go.
“Are we well equipped? I think the players are going to tell us that here in this coming stretch. If they don’t pull through, that’s on me. We haven’t found the right mix of guys to take advantage of it. But if we have a depth issue, that falls on my shoulders and it should be held against me more than anybody else.”
O’Connor, with Crosby and Guentzel, had one shot on goal in 17:07 of ice time in the loss Friday.
“He works really hard. He does a lot out there,” Crosby said. “He’s quick. He gets to loose pucks, generates offense. He’s good defensively. He’s (penalty) killing now. He’s got a lot of responsibility and he’s handled it really well.”
With Rust injured, forward Jesse Puljujarvi joined the Penguins on a free agent tryout Sunday. He had 16 points (five goals, 11 assists) in 75 games between the Edmonton Oilers and Carolina Hurricanes last season before having double hip surgery in the offseason.
Puljujarvi, selected No. 4 by Edmonton in the 2016 NHL Draft, has 114 points (51 goals, 63 assists) in 334 games. He rotated at right wing on the first line with O’Connor in practice Sunday and missed Monday to manage his return from surgery.
“What I think with Jesse, obviously he's had a very significant operation,” Dubas said. “So that takes time to get back from. It's going to be a process here, day to day, to make sure we put him in the best position, when we do make a decision on him, that he's able to withstand the rigors of a season every day without having further hidden issues.”
