Penguins’ Michael Bunting out indefinitely after appendix surgery

Pittsburgh Penguins left winger Michael Bunting will be out of the lineup indefinitely after undergoing surgery to remove his appendix, Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan confirmed Thursday per Matt Vensel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Through 58 appearances with the Penguins this season, Bunting has scored 14 times and added 15 assists to sit sixth in team scoring with 29 points. Bunting also headlines the Penguins with 48 penalty minutes.

Joining the Penguins last season as part of the deal that sent former forward Jake Guentzel to the Carolina Hurricanes, Bunting approached near point-per-game production in his introduction with Pittsburgh a year ago as he put up six goals and 13 assists through 21 outings. Combined with his time with Carolina, Bunting closed out the 2023-24 campaign with 55 points counting 19 goals and 36 assists coming in 81 games.

Originally chosen in the fourth round of the 2014 NHL Draft by the former Arizona Coyotes, Bunting has totaled 326 career contests between the Coyotes, Toronto Maple Leafs, Hurricanes, and Penguins in which he has collected 90 goals and 120 assists for 210 points. With his hometown Maple Leafs in 2021-22, Bunting reached a career-high 63 points counting 23 goals and 40 assists in 79 outings and finished as a Calder Trophy finalist for the NHL’s Rookie of the Year.

Per PuckPedia, the 29-year-old Bunting is in the second year of a three-year contract that carries a $4.5-million annual average value.

For the Penguins, the club sits 23-28-9 on the season and nine points shy of the Metropolitan Division rival Columbus Blue Jackets for the final wildcard seed in the Eastern Conference. In the midst of a four-game losing skid, the Penguins will look to return to the win column when the team retakes the ice Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers.