Letang out at least 4 weeks for Penguins with fractured foot

Kris Letang is expected to miss a minimum of four weeks with a fractured foot, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced prior to their game against the New York Rangers on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET; ABC, SNO, SNE, SN1, TVAS).

The 38-year-old defenseman played the previous two games, Letang including 21:15 in Pittsburgh’s fifth straight win on Thursday, a 6-2 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks. Letang missed the two games prior to that because of an upper-body injury, but neither did he nor forward Evgeni Malkin (undisclosed) practiced on Friday. There was not an immediate update on Malkin’s status.

Letang, who has been placed on injured reserve, has 25 points (three goals, 22 assists) in 50 games this season while averaging 22:06 of ice time.

“I’ve said it before and will say it again — injuries come up,” Penguins coach Dan Muse said. “It’s the next-man-up and taking those minutes. It’s an opportunity for guys.”

NHL.com independent correspondent Wes Crosby contributed to this report