Fractured jaw sidelines Sabres' Numminen indefinitely
Buffalo Sabres defenseman Teppo Numminen will be sidelined indefinitely after undergoing minor surgery this morning for a small fracture of the jaw.
Numminen was injured in the first minute of the second period Saturday night in HSBC Arena when he was struck flush in the face with the puck after a shot by Carolina defenseman Tom Gleason. Numminen returned to play eight more shifts in the second period but did not play in the third.
"He's going to be out for a period of time," coach Lindy Ruff said today following practice in the Amherst Pepsi Center. "We don't know exactly how long but it's weeks versus days. ... It's a fracture that had to be fixed. He feels good but it's just kind of a freak accident."
The 40-year-old Numminen had played all 45 games to date this season after missing all but the final game last year after heart surgery. Numminen scored his second goal of the season in the first period of Saturday's 3-1 win, becoming the only Buffalo defenseman with two goals this season.
Ruff said Nathan Paetsch will take Numminen's spot in the lineup when the Sabres play Monday night at Florida. Paetsch has been a healthy scratch for 14 straight games, dating to the Dec. 17 loss to New Jersey. Even with Andrej Sekera (ankle) also out, Ruff said the Sabres are not planning to call up a seventh defenseman for their road trip.
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