Penguins forward Jansen Harkins out long term following hand surgery
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jansen Harkins will be sidelined on a long-term basis after undergoing surgery for a hand injury Friday morning.
Per the league’s media website, Harkins is designated to injured reserve. It was not immediately clear if he is on regular or long-term injured reserve.
Harkins was presumably injured during a 6-0 home loss to the Washington Capitals on Thursday. Following a fight with Capitals forward Beck Malenstyn at 7:18 of the second period, Harkins did not record shift for the remainder of the game.
Primarily deployed on the fourth line, Harkins has appeared in 43 games this season and recorded four assists while averaging 8:12 of ice time per contest.
Notes:
• Injured Penguins forward Bryan Rust practiced Friday in Cranberry in a full-contact capacity.
An undisclosed injury has sidelined Rust for the past six games. Coach Mike Sullivan did not provide a substantive update on Rust but suggested he is “closer” to rejoining the lineup.
• Rookie forwards Jonathan Gruden and Joona Koppanen were absent from practice after being assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League (AHL). It was not clear if those are paper transactions as the AHL has a deadline on Friday at 3 p.m. for players to be assigned to teams in that league to be eligible for the Calder Cup playoffs.
• Rookie forward Valtteri Puustinen was also assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in a paper transaction. He was present for Friday’s practice session.
• Forward Drew O’Connor, who missed Thursday’s game due to a concussion, skated prior to practice.
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
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