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Sutter: Martinez not close to returning because ‘they nearly cut his finger off’

Los Angeles Kings v Philadelphia Flyers

Alec Martinez

NHLI via Getty Images

Pinky fingers are serious business. Just ask Darryl Sutter.

The Kings head coach explained as much on Thursday, saying injured defenseman Alec Martinez -- who underwent surgery for a busted pinky last week -- isn’t close to returning to the lineup.

“We’ve just got to wait for the wound to heal and that’s going to take some time. It’s got to heal,” Sutter said, per the L.A. Times. “They nearly cut his finger off. So I don’t think he can play in a week .... Your fingers do have a pulse in them and it does hurt. And Marty’s tough. We’ve seen him play lots, not with little-finger injuries but with big injuries. It’s painful.

“Put the glove in there and sweat in there and you’ve got to be careful. You could start losing ground to an infection. We miss him a lot but he can’t play at 20 percent.”

Sutter’s diagnosis flies in the face of the one-week recovery period originally floated by GM Dean Lombardi. Martinez has already missed a full week (three games) and doesn’t sound as though he’ll be ready for Saturday’s game in Dallas.

This injury, combined with Slava Voynov’s indefinite suspension, means L.A. will continue to roll with a six-man defensive unit of Drew Doughty, Jake Muzzin, Robyn Regehr, Matt Greene, Jamie McBain and Brayden McNabb.