Siegenthaler misses Devils practice, Jack Hughes rests

The first sign something was off came the second the Devils hit the practice ice and 2 regulars weren't on it.

Amanda Stein

@amandacstein

Jonas Siegenthaler is not on the ice for #NJDevils today. He left Tuesday's game against Utah with an injury. HC Keefe said he would be needed to be evaluated. Jack Hughes also not on the ice for practice. We'll check in with Keefe afterwards.

Siegenthaler went down at 3:50 of the 3rd period Tuesday night against the Mammoth, falling awkwardly after a collision in the corner with Logan Cooley. He didn't return. Reporters said he looked like he was in a lot of pain but left the ice under his own power, and the team is calling it a lower-body injury. Sheldon Keefe had no update after the game and said the Devils won't know the full extent until he's evaluated over the next few days. Missing Thursday's skate doesn't answer that question, but it doesn't make anyone feel better either.

Then Jack Hughes wasn't out there either, and you could feel Devils Twitter start to reach for the panic button. That didn't last long. Within a few minutes the word was in: it's rest, not an injury.

Anthony Corona

@ACoronaNJD

Per team source "Maintenance day for Jack." Nothing to see here folks. #NJDevils

Take the team source at their word. Early-season maintenance days for Jack aren't new, and nothing in Thursday's reporting suggested anything worse. Noesen filled his spot on the line in practice, and the forward lines otherwise went back to the setup New Jersey used to start its first 3 games, with Mantha and Gritsyuk flipped back after they swapped in the 3rd period against Utah.

The real change is on the back end. Without Siegenthaler, Kovacevic, who is working his way back to health, went right back next to Dillon, a partner he already knows.

Amanda Stein

@amandacstein

With no Siegenthaler at practice, but Kovacevic inching his way back to health, #NJDevils have slotted Kovy back in with Dillon: Luke-Pesce Dillon-Kovacevic Hamilton-Chisholm

One small fix to those pairs: it's Chisholm-Hamilton on the 3rd pair, not the other way around. The bigger takeaway is that no new defenseman got called up, so for now New Jersey is covering this from inside the room. Poirier also got his first full practice with the club since being claimed off waivers, which gives Keefe 1 more body if he needs it.

This is a bad time for the Devils to lose a defenseman. Utah handed them a 2nd straight loss at Prudential Center and dropped them to 1-2-0, and Siegenthaler is the steady, shutdown guy you don't notice until he's gone. If the evaluation comes back with something longer than a day-to-day tag, Kovacevic's health stops being a nice bonus and becomes something they need. Watch for Keefe's update after practice and for whether Hughes is back on the ice tomorrow. If he is, everybody can calm down about Jack. The Siegenthaler news is the part that matters.