The Ottawa Senators, a team working hard to maintain a playoff spot in a tight Eastern Conference race, were dealt a big blow on Saturday as forward Bobby Ryan will be out of the lineup indefinitely after suffering an injury to his right index finger in a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“He’ll be out for a while. If it’s broken, we’re talking 3-6 weeks,” said Senators Coach Guy Boucher. “This obviously comes at a bad moment. Let’s not kid ourselves. This team is battling hard to make the playoffs and we desperately need him in the lineup. He was going really good and you take a guy of that caliber, he’s got the size and the smarts to be able to play against big teams and can fit on any line, those guys you don’t replace.”
Boucher said Ryan injured the finger after being hit by a puck during the 6-3 win. This is the second time this season that Ryan has injured the finger. He missed two games in November with a bone bruise near the base of the finger, returned to play four games and then missed three games.
Ryan has 24 points in 50 games this season, including a goal and two assists in his past five games.
“He was playing great,” Boucher said. “That’s the tough thing. He was a top-six guy and were already missing a top-six guy [left wing Clarke MacArthur] since the beginning of the year and now you miss another one. We’ll have to find a way like we did all year.”
