Capitals right wing Viktor Kozlov will miss at least two weeks after suffering a knee injury during Monday’s 5-1 win over Vancouver, general manager George McPhee said.
Kozlov appeared to hurt his left knee after a collision with Canucks defenseman Rob Davison in the second period. He did not practice on Tuesday and will undergo further tests today to determine the exact nature of the injury. Kozlov, 33, had registered one assist in three games.
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“I haven’t heard what the reports are. But he’s probably going to be out a couple weeks,” Caps coach Bruce Boudreau said. “I don’t know if any results are back in or anything. But that’s my guess.”
In place of Kozlov, right wing Chris Clark skated during practice on the top line with Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom — although Boudreau cautioned not to read much into the line pairings. The Caps (2-1) still have one more practice this morning to finalize things before leaving for Pittsburgh, where they face the Penguins on Thursday night.
Forward Alexander Semin, who scored two goals on Monday, also did not practice, but will be ready for today, according to Boudreau. Forward Donald Brashear was nursing an injured left hand after getting hit with a puck Monday night, but will practice today, too. Down three forwards, Boudreau had center Sergei Fedorov back up front Tuesday after starting the 38-year-old veteran on defense against the Canucks. Boudreau would not commit to starting Fedorov there again in Pittsburgh.
“I looked back after the game — after I settled down a bit — and I really did enjoy it,” Fedorov said of his time paired on defense with Milan Jurcina. “It kept me alert. But I don’t want to get too comfortable because it’s not my natural position. It’s sort of a new, revised challenge.”
One player likely to play at forward against the Penguins is Eric Fehr, a healthy scratch in each of the first three games. He is the only Capital not to appear in a game so far.
“[Fehr] was going to play this weekend anyway. I just didn’t want to throw him and [center Boyd Gordon] in [during] the same game [Monday night],” Boudreau said. “In this game people get hurt. It’s going to happen, unfortunately. That’s why I think we’re lucky that we have great depth.”
McPhee also said the team was nearing a destination for one of its three goalie prospects at AHL affiliate Hershey. So far, Daren Machesney, 22, and Simeon Varlamov, 20, have both started for the Bears. But Michal Neuvirth, 20, is also on the roster and a likely candidate to be loaned to another AHL team. That would alleviate a logjam and ensure each player gets adequate playing time this season. McPhee has said in the past that Neuvirth would not be sent to ECHL affiliate South Carolina, one rung below the AHL. Machesney was a fifth-round draft pick in 2005, Varlamov a first-rounder in 2006 and Neuvirth a second-rounder that year.
“We may have an answer in a day or so,” McPhee said. “It looks like we’ll get something done and a decision [on a loan to another AHL team] could come soon. We’re a day or two away from getting the answers that we’re looking for.”
