- Penguins defenseman Ryan Graves sustained a concussion in last night’s win over the Blue Jackets, head coach Mike Sullivan told reporters today (via Rob Rossi of The Athletic). It’s unclear what play Graves was injured on, but he last skated with just over a minute left in the first period and did not return for the second. Pittsburgh thus rotated through five defenders for most of last night’s 3-2 victory, which kept their slim (2.9%, per MoneyPuck) playoff hopes alive. The Penguins haven’t issued a recovery timeline for Graves, although, given the nature of concussions, it’s feasible that he could be done for the regular season with 10 games remaining. If so, it ends a disappointing first season in Pittsburgh for the 28-year-old, who won himself a rather rich six-year, $27MM contract with limited trade protection from Penguins GM Kyle Dubas in free agency last July. He’s slowly fallen out of favor with head coach Mike Sullivan throughout the season, averaging 18:23 per game, the lowest since his 26-game rookie showing in 2018-19 with the Avalanche. He logged three goals and 14 points in 70 games, finishing in the middle of the pack among Penguins skaters in most advanced metrics.