Sens' Bobby Ryan aggravates hand injury, Anderson takes leave of absence
Forward, goalie will be out of action indefinitely
Ottawa Senators forward Bobby Ryan is sidelined indefinitely after re-injuring his right hand in Tuesday night's 5-4 loss to visiting Buffalo, while netminder Craig Anderson has taken a leave of absence to be with his wife as she begins cancer treatment.
According to NHL.com, Mike Condon will start in place of Anderson, and Andrew Hammond, who was recalled from the AHL earlier this week, will serve as the backup.
Craig Anderson has taken a leave of absence from the <a href="https://twitter.com/Senators">@Senators</a> to be with his wife as she begins cancer treatment. <a href="https://t.co/Or84TNWaic">https://t.co/Or84TNWaic</a>
—@NHLAnderson was away from the team for six days during training camp and for an additional three days in late October when Nicholle Anderson received her diagnosis for nasopharyngeal carcinoma.
"We know he is going to miss some games very soon, so he basically wants to play all the games that he can until he misses some," head coach Guy Boucher said Sunday, following Anderson's 33-save shutout in a 2-0 win against the New York Rangers.
While the Senators paid for a slow start in Tuesday's loss, the sting of losing Ryan will last much longer.
Ryan might also be second-guessing himself for returning early from a right hand injury, which he hurt again after skating just 2:50 into into the first period and will be sidelined indefinitely.
The 29-year-old first injured the hand in a Nov. 17 game against Nashville and sat out two games with what was reported to be a "deep bone bruise" before returning Nov. 24 versus Boston.
The injury, the right-handed shooting Ryan said at the time, affected his ability to pass, shoot and handle the puck because it was his bottom hand, but he set up Kyle Turris for a goal.
"It isn't 100 per cent," Ryan told reporters before facing the Bruins, "but I feel I can get out there and go. I'm just going to play through it. That's all you can do."
Well, until the pain becomes too severe as it did Tuesday night.
A tough off-season during which Ryan lost his mother Melody to liver cancer has carried into the season as the Senators' highest-paid player with a base salary of $7 million US is on track for his least productive offensive performance in 10 NHL seasons.
In 21 games, Ryan has three goals and eight points while averaging 14:56 of ice time after topping 17 minutes in each of the two previous seasons with Ottawa.
Ryan had 48 points in 70 contests in his first campaign with the Senators in 2013-14, marking his lowest point total in an 82-game season.