Pens’ Staal, Habs’ Markov are out for Game 2

Associated Press

PITTSBURGH, PA.

They’ve gotten by without Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Sergei Gonchar, and Marc-Andre Fleury. What the Pittsburgh Penguins haven’t done since emerging as one of the NHL’s best teams three years ago is get by without Jordan Staal.

Now they must, and they know this won’t be easy.

Perhaps as difficult as it is for the Montreal Canadiens to play without top defenseman Andrei Markov.

It’s Game 2 of the Canadiens-Penguins series on Sunday, and two players who are largely responsible for their teams advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals will be missing.

Staal, one of the NHL’s premier two-way players, is out indefinitely because of a severed tendon in his right foot. It appears likely he will miss at least the rest of a series Pittsburgh leads 1-0.

Penguins coach Dan Bylsma denied Saturday that Staal is through for the season, but didn’t drop any hints when he might return.

“You always rely on him,” Penguins forward Max Talbot said. “He’s a strength out there. He’s a leader, and you can’t replace a guy like that.”

Until now, the Penguins haven’t had to replace him. Staal has played in 358 consecutive games, counting the playoffs, never missing a NHL game except for being a healthy scratch once during his rookie season.

Staal’s absence changes the Penguins lineup, their matchups and, too, their very personality. Or much like being without Markov alters the Canadiens.

The Canadiens were 14-20-3 without their best defenseman during the season, when Markov sat out for two months with severed tendons in his left foot. Now, he is out again due to an apparent right knee injury that occurred when he was checked by Matt Cooke during the first period of the Penguins’ 6-3 victory in Game 1 on Friday.

Markov returned to Montreal on a private plane after the game to be examined by specialists, and he could miss at least the rest of the series.

“I can’t say when he’ll be back,” coach Jacques Martin said. “He’s out indefinitely.”

The Canadiens planned to use Markov extensively against Crosby’s line. Instead, that task will fall to rookie defenseman P.K. Subban, who was inadvertently responsible for Staal’s injury when the two collided.

“He stepped in and did a lot of good things for us, put in a lot of key minutes,” defenseman Josh Gorges said of Subban. “Even when he was out there against Crosby, he did a great job.”

Similarly, Staal’s two-way play is partly why the Penguins are so difficult to beat in the postseason, going 8-2 in playoff series since 2007. He is a finalist for the Selke Trophy, awarded for defensive excellence by a forward.