PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin will miss 2-3 weeks with a foot injury.
Malkin was injured while in front of the net in his first shift against the St. Louis Blues on Sunday, Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said. Malkin did not practice Monday, which was said to be due to a day off for the Penguins' Olympians except forward Chris Kunitz.
Bylsma said Malkin will not need surgery.
A past winner of the Hart, Art Ross and Conn Smythe trophies, Malkin did not participate in Pittsburgh's morning skate before its game Tuesday against the Phoenix Coyotes and was replaced by forward Brandon Sutter on the second line between forwards Jussi Jokinen and James Neal.
Malkin was playing some of his most productive hockey of the season prior to the injury, culminating in a four-point, two-goal performance against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.
"To get that news is disappointing," Bylsma said. "We'd like him to remember how he was playing the last couple games in terms of 2-3 weeks from now."
Pittsburgh's power play will also be rearranged in Malkin's absence. During their morning skate, the Penguins moved defenseman Olli Maatta to the first power-play unit with forwards Sidney Crosby, Neal and Kunitz and defenseman Matt Niskanen. Defenseman Brooks Orpik worked on the second unit in a role he called "an emergency situation."
Jokinen, who is having one of his best seasons with 50 points in 71 games, said it will be difficult to replace Malkin.
"Every time you lose a player like that, it's a big blow for the team," Jokinen said. "At the same time, we've dealt with a lot of injuries during the year and it might be the same case during the playoffs, and we're losing one of our big names to injury, we still need to find a way to win some games.
"There's only one Evgeni Malkin in the world."
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