NHL: Penguins lose Lizotte week-to-week at camp

Two forwards down

Training camp is barely running and Pittsburgh already has a hole in the middle.

The Penguins said a few hours ago that forwards Blake Lizotte (upper body) and Oliver Okuliar (lower body) would sit out camp, with both injuries listed as week-to-week.

Lizotte is the one that stings. He is not a star, but he is a known quantity: 55 games and 19 points for Pittsburgh last season, and 434 regular-season NHL games with 55 goals over his career. He was penciled in as the fourth-line center.

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Who takes the fourth-line job?

Local outlet Pensburgh pointed to Tristan Broz and Hendrix Lapierre, who have both been working at center in camp, as the obvious candidates. Connor Dewar has also slid into the middle recently. Okuliar, a Slovak winger, has yet to register a stat in the NHL.

The timing is awkward for a team with real ambitions. Pittsburgh put up 98 points in 2025-26 and made the playoffs, then went out in the first round to the Philadelphia Flyers. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are both back for another run.

Preseason carries on regardless. The Penguins beat the Buffalo Sabres on Monday and were set to face the Detroit Red Wings tonight, a chance for one of the center candidates to make a case.

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