Down goes Michalek

Milan Michalek's first two seasons with the Ottawa Senators were plagued by injuries.

And now the NHL's leading goal scorer has seen his third season in the nation's capital become clouded by yet another injury. The club confirmed that Michalek suffered a concussion in their 3-2 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night.

At this point, however, Senators head coach Paul MacLean is hoping that Michalek won't be sidelined for an extended period of time.

"It's disappointing for him. I don't believe at this point it's going to ruin his year like the other major injuries he's had in the past, which have put him out for months and months. At this point in time, we suspect it'll be day-to-day. It's disappointing, but it's not devesating," said MacLean.

While the club is officially listing him as day-to-day, it should be noted that Michalek did miss seven games with a concussion, after suffering one in a game against the Washington Capitals on Jan. 7, 2010.

Michalek, who scored his league-leading 19th goal to open the scoring Tuesday night, suffered the concussion when he collided with teammate Erik Karlsson in the second period of the game. Michalek returned to play a couple of shifts, but went to the Ottawa dressing room and did not return for the rest of the night.

"Milan came full speed and we tried to both avoid it, but we still collided," explained Karlsson. "Things like that, you can't do much about. It's just bad luck."

Bad luck is a phrase that pretty much summarizes Michalek's first two seasons with the Senators. Major knee injuries limited his playing time and he collected just 18 goals in 66 games last season. Ironically, he surpassed that goal total on Tuesday night prior to his injury.

The Senators will be hard pressed to replace his offense, starting with Wednesday's game against the Boston Bruins. Bobby Butler, who has scored just two goals in 21 games this season, will draw into the lineup because of Michalek's absence.

"He's a big cog in our lineup and has been playing great," said centre Jason Spezza. "He's definitely tough to replace and it puts Bobby (Butler) back into the lineup and he's been looking for a chance to break out. But it's real unfortunate, because we lose a guy that's been playing really well."

Michalek's injury comes just days after the NHL's leading point scorer -- Claude Giroux -- suffered an eerily similar concussion after he was hit by his own teammate Wayne Simmonds. Spezza says that trying to avoid your own teammate on the ice is one of the hardest things to do when moving at a high speed.

"They are freak accidents and it's kind of weird that it's happened to three star players in a week and a half," added Spezza. "Sometimes, it's harder to get away from your own guys because you kind of get that deer-in-the-headlights look and nobody knows which direction you're going to go. It's a lot of irony that guys have been getting hurt from their own teammates."