Penguins defenceman Kris Letang to get second opinion on ‘significant’ injury

Kris Letang will be getting a second opinion on an injury that has been ailing the Pittsburgh Penguins defenceman all season.

General manager Kyle Dubas said that it was a “significant” injury and they will have an update once Letang has made a decision on what he will do next.

Letang told reporters on Thursday he was dealing with injuries that forced him to take maintenance days throughout the season.

“Letang was dealing with a myriad of injuries for a long time,” head coach Mike Sullivan told reporters. “He’s a warrior. There’s no other way to put it, some of the things that he was dealing with down the stretch and continuing to play through to try to help us get to where we want to go.”

Despite the injury concerns, Letang was able to make it through all 82 games of the season for the first time since 2010-11. He didn’t see a dip in his production as he scored 10 goals and 51 assists while averaging 24:41 minutes of ice time.

The 36-year-old has had many health challenges over the years suffering two strokes (one in 2014 and the other in 2022) but has managed to still be a key part of the Penguins.

Letang signed a six-year, $36.6 million contract extension with the Penguins back in July 2022.

More from Sportsnet

Penguins’ Jeff Carter announces retirement after 19 seasons in NHL

Erik Karlsson calls Penguins ‘a huge disappointment’ after missing playoffs