Devils center Jack Hughes suffered an upper-body injury Friday night in St. Louis. He is listed as week-to-week and will not play against Chicago or Colorado to finish this four-game road trip for the team.
“We were fortunate. He came back and tried a shift,” Ruff said. “We have him on his way home to be taken care of by the athletic care people back in Jersey. I think we’re fortunate.”
Dawson Mercer slid into Hughes’ spot to finish the game in St. Louis. The Devils were already dealing with an injury to captain Nico Hischier, who has missed that past three games with an upper-body injury.
“We’re dealing with a couple key injuries. You take Hischier out. You take Hughes out. That’s a couple top centermen,” Ruff said. “At the same time, it’s a great opportunity for other players to step in. We’re fortunate that we have Mercer who can play in the middle, Haula can play in the middle, Tierney can play in the middle. We have some guys that can step in. Michael McLeod has been playing well. It’s tough to replace what went out, but it’s a big opportunity for the guys that are stepping in."
Hughes suffered the injury after toe-picking the ice, falling and slamming hard into the end boards. He skated on his next shift, but then left the game and did not return.
