Seth Jones will be out 3-4 weeks for the Chicago Blackhawks because of a right thumb injury.
Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson said the 28-year-old defenseman sustained the injury when he blocked a shot in the second period of a 4-3 overtime loss to the Buffalo Sabers on Saturday. Jones finished the game and had one assist in 23:55 of ice time.
“The adrenaline carries you through the game, then you start to cool down and things start to cramp up,” Richardson said Sunday before a 4-3 shootout loss to the Minnesota Wild. “It was sore, they took a picture of it, and that’s where we’re at right now.”
Jones has four assists in eight games this season and leads Chicago in ice time per game (25:12).
“That’s a big blow to our team; [I] feel bad for him,” Richardson said. “He was playing well and playing a lot. It’s always a big blow to an athlete when they put all that training in and get hurt, especially early in the season, but hopefully it’s not too long, and we’ll just try and kind of shift things around a little bit, especially on special teams.
“He plays a lot of big minutes for us and against top lines, so we’re just going to have to shuffle the deck a little bit, try to buy some time and win by committee on defense and wait until he gets back. That ‘ll be a boost for us when he does get back.”
NHL.com staff writer Tracey Myers contributed to this report
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