Islanders' Rick DiPietro to miss up to six weeks with injuries
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Islanders goaltender Rick DiPietro is expected to miss up to six weeks with injuries suffered in a fight with Pittsburgh netminder Brent Johnson during a this week, the team said on Friday.
The 29-year-old DiPietro has both facial fractures and knee swelling and will miss anywhere between four to six weeks, the Islanders said in a statement.
"It's unfortunate, it's frustrating and every other emotion you can throw in there," DiPietro told reporters on Friday. "You never go into a fight expecting you're going to get smashed in the face that hard, or with these kind of consequences, but it happens."
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DiPietro and Johnson fought in the closing seconds of the Penguins' 3-0 victory on Wednesday with Johnson dropping DiPietro to the ice with a punch to the face.
(Reporting by Gene Cherry in Salvo, North Carolina; Editing by Frank Pingue)