SAN JOSE – While a definitive timeline is still uncertain, Logan Couture is expected back in the Sharks' lineup this season after taking a puck to the face and losing several teeth on Saturday in Nashville.
The center was set to undergo dental work on Monday, according to coach Pete DeBoer, who indicated that the injury was perhaps not quite as bad as it looked.
"You see him the next day, the swelling wasn't as bad as we thought," DeBoer said. "He's seeing the dentist today, and going to have some dental work done. But, I think the initial prognosis is that we feel pretty fortunate with the amount of damage compared to what it could have been."
Joe Pavelski said that he's "not a doctor," but that he expects Couture back in the Sharks' lineup "at some point."
DeBoer reacted to Pavelski's declaration, saying: "Oh, yeah. I don't think that's even not a consideration."
The Sharks have seven games remaining in the regular season, while the playoffs start in a little more than two weeks. Could Couture - who will miss at least Tuesday's game against the Rangers, and probably more - return before the postseason?
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"I don't know timeframe. He's seeing the dentist today. We'll see," DeBoer said.
Couture was set up just outside the crease in the third period of Saturday's 7-2 loss in Nashville when a Brent Burns point shot late in the second period hit a stick before squarely smacking into the 27-year-old's mouth. He quickly skated to the dressing room under his own power with just 14 seconds before the intermission.
Couture's father, Chet, said on Twitter that it was "an ugly injury sadly."
