The Devils will be playing without their leading goal scorer for the foreseeable future, as the team announced Wednesday that captain Nico Hischier is considered week-to-week with an upper-body injury
Hischier appeared to hurt his ribs in the second period of the Devils' win over the Canadiens on Jan. 25, after taking a cross-check from Nick Suzuki that surprisingly went unpenalized. The former first-overall pick logged just one third-period shift before retreating to the locker room.
"It's something I think [the trainers will] evaluate again next week and then take it from there," Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe said. "But he won't be available this week for sure."
While the initial outlook on Hischier's injury was positive -- Keefe viewed him as day-to-day -- it won't be surprising to see the Devils act cautiously with their impact center. He missed games against the Flyers on Monday and Wednesday, and isn't expected to suit up against the Sabers on Sunday or the Penguins next Tuesday.
The timing of Hischier's injury could be far worse, considering the NHL will take a week off in February for the brand-new Four Nations Face-Off tournament. But the Devils (64 points, 3rd in Metro) rely heavily on their captain for points, and they're also missing starting goalie Jacob Markstrom, who likely won't return to action until late February due to a lower-body injury.
Hischier has been a two-way star this season. He's scored a team-high 24 goals in 51 games, and his 43 points rank third-best on the roster. Since joining the league in 2017, the 26-year-old has recorded 396 points (160 goals, 236 assists) in 503 games. Barring a drastic setback, Hischier should produce his second career 30-goal season.