PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – It was close to being a major injury, but Pens goalie Stuart Skinner was on the ice Tuesday for an optional practice, saying he felt good and saw the puck well.
You could see the damage around his left eye, but he said the swelling has gone down. It nearly was much worse.
He said he got hit with a puck in the second period of the Pens win over Florida on Saturday. As the Pens were trying to get the puck in the offensive zone, it sailed into the bench area, deflected off the glass and caught him around the eye.
“I’m actually extremely lucky, if was looking a little bit more to my left, it would have clipped me right in the eye,” Skinner said. “I’m fortunate.”
Initially he thought he got out of it without any issue. Skinner said when he went to bed on Saturday he was fine. When he woke up, the ‘eye kinda closed on me’. The 27-year-old said he hoped ice was going to reduce the swelling, it didn’t. He said he wasn’t going to be too proud and hurt the team, so he informed the them Sunday morning.
Skinner also feels fortunate not only that the injury wasn’t worse, but that the team has the longest stretch of days between games since January. He was able to work full Tuesday, but in a workout with only a dozen of them on the ice. There is a full practice on Wednesday.
Pens head coach Dan Muse was noncommittal to Skinner’s availability Thursday at New Jersey or going forward. He was scheduled to see a doctor after practice on Tuesday to get it checked, but Skinner said he could see 100%, including peripheral vision.
The optional practice at the arena consisted of three goalies, as AHL goalie Sergei Murashov was recalled. They rotated through drills, but with a clean bill of health for Skinner, the anticipation would be Murashov will be sent back down.
Nothing official on his status, Sergei Murashov practices with Pens
Nothing official on his status, Sergei Murashov practices with Pens
