New Jersey Devils may not see recently injured defenseman for a while

If his appearance on the broadcast means anything, the New Jersey Devils won't be seeing Brett Pesce back on the ice playing for them anytime soon.

During Thursday night's 4-3 overtime win over the Montreal Canadiens, the broadcast cut to Pesce sitting in the press box checking out his phone. What was revealed, however, was that Pesce was sporting a rather significant cast that was covering his entire left hand, aside from his thumb, and at least part of his wrist.

Pesce, 30, was placed on injured reserve Thursday to make room for center Cody Glass, who scored against the Canadiens after returning from an injury of his own.

It sure looks like Brett Pesce is going to be out for more than a month

Pesce last played for the Devils in an impressive 4-3 overtime win over the Colorado Avalanche on Oct. 26, though he lasted just seven shifts and 6:07 in that contest. The longtime Carolina defenseman put his body on the line blocking a shot, but certainly came away worse for it.

Pesce hobbled around in pain for a bit, but was able to finish his shift before departing for the night.

The good news for the Devils is that they've managed to survive without their most important defenseman for nearly two weeks already, which puts us two weeks closer to a return.

The bad news is that forward Evgenii Dadonov broke a bone in his hand in the season opener on Oct. 9 and hasn't returned yet after a month, and according to Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe, his return isn't imminent.

In an ideal world, the Devils would see both veterans re-join the lineup before or around Thanksgiving, but the early indications aren't looking particularly promising.