Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson suffered an undisclosed injury during the first period of a 3-2 overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa on Saturday. He did not complete the contest.
There was no immediate word on his status beyond the team acknowledging via one of its social media accounts that he suffered an ailment.
Pettersson did not record a shift beyond the 16:11 mark of the opening period.
Typically deployed on the team’s second defensive pairing alongside Erik Karlsson, Pettersson is arguably the team’s most reliable defensive presence, at least on the blue line.
Entering Saturday, Pettersson had appeared in all 31 of the Penguins’ games and scored 13 points (two goals, 11 assists) while averaging 22 minutes, 18 seconds of ice time per contest, including a team-leading 2:54 during short-handed situations.
As for the remainder of the contest, forward Brady Tkachuk’s 15th goal of the season at 1:46 of the overtime period was the difference.
Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry, starting his fourth consecutive contest, unofficially made 28 saves on 31 shots as his record fell to 6-4-2.
Senators defenseman Thomas Chabot opened the scoring with his second goal 7:32 into regulation.
Accepting a pass at the left point of the offensive zone, Chabot clapped a one-timer toward the net that Jarry fought off. On the ensuing rebound, Senators forward Claude Giroux collected the puck and scooted to the right of the cage before going behind it as a scrambling Jarry slid out of position. Emerging to the left of the net, Giroux distributed a pass to the left circle for Chabot, who chopped another one-timer into a mostly vacant cage as Jarry scrambled to get back into position.
The Penguins got on the scoreboard at 2:39 of the third period via forward Blake Lizotte’s seventh goal.
After Penguins forward Matt Nieto hounded Senators defenseman Nick Jensen into a turnover on Ottawa’s end boards, Nieto dished a pass to the left point, where Penguins defenseman Matt Grzelyck swatted a one-timer toward the cage. Goaltender Linus Ullmark made the initial save but couldn’t prevent a rebound. After Penguins forward Noel Acciari battled with Chabot and made contact with the puck, Lizotte collected the rebound just below the lower left hashmark, dragged it past Chabot’s right leg and deposited a backhander into the cage as Ullmark breakdanced in his crease.
The hosts restored a lead when forward Drake Batherson, a steady nemesis of the Penguins, scored his 13th goal at 6:38 of the third frame.
Taking a pass in the high slot of the offensive zone, Chabot backpedaled toward the right circle and — despite a partial block by Penguins forward Sidney Crosby — directed a pass to the far side of the crease. As Grzelcyk made a tardy attempt to break up the sequence, Batherson, stationed next to the left post, directed the puck into the cage with his left skate. It was Batherson’s 15th point (eight goals, seven assists) in 11 career games against the Penguins.
Penguins defenseman Kris Letang’s seventh goal tied the score again at 12:40 of the third period.
Collecting a loose puck in his own left corner, Letang calmly skated it up ice. Weaving by Senators forward Noah Gregor at the center red line, Letang gained the offensive zone and veered toward the left wing, pulling up on the half-wall. As teammates rushed into the zone, Letang surveyed the scene and lobbed a wrister that sailed past Ullmark’s glove on the far side. Nieto supplied a screen on the sequence.
Note: Penguins defensive prospects Emil Pieniniemi and Kalle Kangas were selected to Finland’s roster for the upcoming International Ice Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) World Junior Championship tournament.