Penguins lose key blue liner for remainder of the season

The Pittsburgh Penguins are in for the fight of their lives tonight against the Detroit Red Wings, as both teams are competing to earn the final Wild Card playoff spot in the tightly-packed Eastern Conference. 

But unfortunately for Pittsburgh, they're going to be without a key blue line piece for the remainder of the regular season. Ryan Graves, who is in his first season with the Penguins, has been moved to LTIR after having suffered a concussion; this means that he can be absent for no less than 10 games and 24 days of the season. 

Graves, who has previously played with the Colorado Avalanche and New Jersey Devils, agreed to join the Penguins with a six-year, $27 million contract. In the 70 games that he's appeared in this season, he's tallied three goals with 11 assists. 

Recommended articles:

• Discouraging health Penguins health update released
• Penguins add Ryan Graves, Lars Eller and Alex Nedeljkovic.
• Ryan Graves shares gruesome photo after taking MacKinnon's skate to the face.
• Avalanche trade defenceman Ryan Graves
• Ryan Reaves suspended by NHL Player Safety for kneeling on Ryan Graves' head