Sidney Crosby’s broken jaw -- which has him out of action indefinitely -- won’t affect how Penguins general manager Ray Shero approaches Wednesday’s trade deadline.
“What center can you get to replace Sid, honestly?” Shero said, per the Tribune-Review. “We’ve made the moves we’re going to make, I think.”
The Penguins reportedly expect Crosby to be back for the playoffs and have already acquired forwards Jarome Iginla and Brenden Morrow, plus defenseman Douglas Murray.
Veteran defenseman Paul Martin -- out 4-6 weeks with a broken hand -- is another injury concern, however. With the postseason scheduled to begin April 30, it’s not clear if he’ll be healthy for the first round.
Martin is averaging 25:23 of ice time, second on the team to only defenseman Kris Letang. The Penguins do have depth on the back end, but Martin’s puck moving will be missed nonetheless.
Pittsburgh hosts Buffalo tomorrow.
The Penguins, as you may have heard, have won 15 straight games.