Penguins' Season Goes from Bad to Worse with Key Player Injury in Crushing Loss to Canucks

Saturday night was, to say the least, a disaster for the Pittsburgh Penguins. It was one of those games that seemed to get away in what felt like just seconds. What started out with promise, a matchup between themselves and the Vancouver Canucks, had unraveled little more than halfway through in a manner few could have anticipated. A spate of quick strikes by the Canucks eradicated not only a two-goal lead by the Penguins but also gave them a stinging defeat, 4-3.

Things really started to fall apart for the Penguins in the second period, where they allowed three goals in 65 seconds. This would have been bad enough on its own, but the night took an even worse turn when they lost one of their key forwards, Bryan Rust, to injury. That's frustrating news for Rust, who had just a couple of weeks ago returned to the lineup from an injury. Immediately skating back to the locker room put both fans and players on edge.

That injury occurred when Rust scored one of the early Penguins goals as part of what was a pretty strong start. His evening ended abruptly after being checked into the boards by Canucks winger Nils Hoglander. Rust, who never had touched the puck, was irate no penalty was called on the hit. He immediately started yelling from the bench at the officials and was ultimately ordered to leave the ice, unable to put any weight on the leg.

While the Penguins did confirm that Rust suffered a lower-body injury, they would not go into details on how severe the damage was. Head coach Mike Sullivan acknowledged the injury but would say little about any timeline for the recovery of Rust, thereby leaving fans and analysts to make wild guesses about how long he could be out.

Losing not just the game itself but an important player, Bryan Rust hurts the Penguins in a dreadful early season. Since this spotty start has already raised questions, this newest setback could prove costly, especially if Rust's absence eventually proves to be extended.