Penguins forward Teddy Blueger remains on track in recovery from broken jaw

Teddy Blueger was the last one off the ice following the Pittsburgh Penguins’ practice in Cranberry on Wednesday.

That’s nothing out of the ordinary.

The defensive center is obsessed with refining the imperfect aspects of his game and has been that way since his days at Minnesota State Mankato.

So things were status quo in that regard.

What was irregular for him, however, was the jersey he wore.

While his teammates donned black, yellow and white jerseys to sort out their positions, lines and combinations, Blueger was decked out gray.

Also, he had a shield over his face.

Sidelined since suffering a broken jaw Jan. 23, Blueger is not permitted contact on the ice while he recovers from a gruesome injury that has sidelined him for the past four weeks.

“It’s coming along well,” said Blueger, who spoke publicly for the first time since being injured. “I’m feeling good. Obviously, being away from the ice for a little bit, you lose it quick. I have been skating by myself. But when you get into a team environment, the pace is a little higher and it is a lot different.

“You get your timing back, just getting the hands and feet working together, things like that. It’s been pretty good overall. Every day has been better and better. And that’s the main thing. The main goal is to just keep improving daily and to be in good shape by the time I’m ready to be back.”

Blueger is weeks away from that terminus. The team initially offered a time frame of six to eight weeks for a return, and Blueger remains on track in respect to that range.

The first weeks of his recovery were, as he put it, “the worst.”

Not necessarily because of any pain he experienced but because of what he was denied.

“The first week, not being able to have any solid foods,” Blueger said. “Going into it, I didn’t think it was going to be too bad. But it’s crazy how you just want to chew something. Just being able to eat basically, it makes a big difference. Even if some of the flavors are the same, it’s just not the same satisfaction.

“After a week to 10 days, I started with soft foods like pasta or some scrambled eggs. I built up from there.”

The 27-year-old also indicated sleeping was an issue at times.

“Sleeping the first week, only on my back and kind of my head elevated on a couple of pillows,” Blueger said. “That was pretty uncomfortable. I don’t like sleeping on my back. Talking wasn’t bad. Those are the main kind of things. Sleeping a little bit and eating.”

Blueger was injured during a 3-2 home win against the Winnipeg Jets. During the first period, he chased down a puck in the end boards of the offensive zone then was clobbered with a high hit by rugged Jets defenseman Brenden Dillon.

Stumbling off the boards, Blueger fell to the ice and play was halted. After being attended to by Penguins athletic trainer Chris Stewart, Blueger recovered to his skates and made his way to the dressing room, leaving a considerable trail of blood on the ice and in the rampway.

“When it happened, right away, it just felt like I got hit pretty hard,” Blueger said. “Then kind of the blood started pouring out. I remember just like walking through the tunnel and (Stewart) was giving me a towel. It didn’t really do anything. It was just pouring out so fast. It went right through the towel then another towel.

“As I was in the medical room after a couple of minutes, it didn’t really stop and the (doctors) couldn’t see. I could feel something was wrong in my mouth. One of my wisdom teeth was dislodged so I couldn’t really close my jaw fully. I could feel it in there but they couldn’t really see anything or what was going on because there was too much blood.

“It was a little scary there for a couple of minutes when they couldn’t really seem to stop it and it just kept pouring out, more and more. Obviously, once they were able to stop it, it was good. It kind of calmed me down a little bit. They were able to see and kind of give me a little bit of an assessment of what was going on.”

The day after the hit, the team announced Blueger underwent surgery.

In the immediate aftermath of the injury, Penguins coach Mike Sullivan, who usually is curt on matters involving discipline, openly questioned why there was no penalty during the game or supplemental discipline afterward.

“As far as the hit, I don’t know, I think everyone has kind of moved past it,” Blueger said. “It is what it is. Those things happen in the game. I’m not the first or last person that’s been involved in something like that. We’ve all moved past it.”

Blueger credited his teammates for offering support, particularly linemate Zach Aston-Reese who suffered a broken jaw during the 2018 postseason.

“(Aston-Reese) was like right away in the medical room with me,” Blueger said. “It was very similar to what he had. So it was nice to have him there. He kind of talked me through. … It did help a lot mentally, just having him there and having that kind of support. It’s something that’s completely brand new to me. Just having a little bit of an expectation of what to go through is huge. Same with (forward Sidney Crosby, who suffered a broken jaw in 2013), talking to him.

“Whenever you go through similar experiences like that with someone, it kind of brings you closer in a way. All the guys were great. It meant so much. I can’t say enough about all the guys. Everyone reached out. Guys were dropping stuff off at my apartment, care packages and smoothies and all that. It really helped a lot by having that support, especially during that first week.”

Blueger still is weeks away from potentially returning for a game. He admits the challenges in recovery aren’t just physical in nature.

“I feel good right now with the progression,” said Blueger, who indicated he lost a few pounds but regained them once he could resume eating solid foods. “I haven’t been doing absolutely everything. There’s been no contact and that could change when I start that. I think overall, it’s going well. I feel pretty good.

“As far as hurdles, contact and then just getting comfortable protecting the puck, being along the wall, things like that. Getting a feel for those things, getting the timing, doing more and more of that, I think that’s kind of going to be a big thing probably. Just kind of mentally, I guess, getting over that, I think that’s probably the main (concern). Other than that, I think it’s been going well.”