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Pens’ Dupuis has blood clot in lung, out six months

Pascal Dupuis

Pittsburgh Penguins’ Pascal Dupuis kneels on the ice after being hit in the back of the head by the puck in the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Dallas Stars in Pittsburgh, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. Dupuis was taken off the ice on a stretcher. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

AP

From the Penguins website:

Forward Pascal Dupuis has been diagnosed with a blood clot in his lung and will be out of the lineup for at least six months while undergoing treatment with blood thinners.

The clot was identified during testing Monday, after Dupuis had complained of discomfort in his chest.

“Pascal had a blood clot in his leg that traveled to his lung,” said Dr. Dharmesh Vyas, the Penguins’ team physician. “In medical terms, that is a deep vein thrombosis resulting in a pulmonary embolism. This is the second such incident that we know of for Pascal. The treatment is at least six months of blood thinners, during which time he will not be able to play hockey. Other than that, his condition is stable.”

Dupuis, 35, previously was diagnosed with a blood clot in January 2014, shortly after he suffered torn ligaments in his knee. He was on blood thinners for six months while also recovering from surgery and rehabilitating his knee.

Dupuis is the second Penguin in as many years to suffer from blood clotting issues -- last season, goalie Tomas Vokoun missed the entire regular season with a clot in his pelvis.

Dupuis’ setback is the latest in a long line of serious health scares to the organization. Defenseman Kris Letang missed significant time last season after suffering a stroke, and fellow blueliner Olli Maatta only recently returned from the lineup after having a cancerous tumor removed from his neck.

#pens doc says team doesn’t have information right now about Dupuis ability to play again

— Rob Rossi (@RobRossi_Trib) November 19, 2014

Dupuis says it’s hard to say right now if he’ll ever play again. #Pens

— Wes Crosby (@OtherNHLCrosby) November 19, 2014

And while the financial side of things isn’t of the utmost importance right now, there is this:

Associate GM Jason Botterill said Dupuis will go on long-term injured reserve and they will get some salary cap relief from that move.

— Seth Rorabaugh (@emptynetters) November 19, 2014