NEW JERSEY VS. TORONTO BUFFALO VS. PITTSBURGH COLORADO VS. LOS ANGELES DALLAS VS. ST. LOUIS

Sunday, April 29 Updated: April 30, 7:17 PM ET Jagr sits out Game 3 vs. Sabres Associated Press Jagr PITTSBURGH – Penguins captain Jaromir Jagr was not in uniform for Monday night's playoff game against Buffalo. Jagr also sat out the Penguins' 3-1 victory in Game 2 Saturday in Buffalo. He practiced Sunday and Monday, but said he can't shoot well enough to play. "I'd only be hurting the team," Jagr said. "If I was out there, it would be like we were playing with four guys (skaters)." The Penguins have said only that Jagr has a charley horse, a bruised muscle that is bleeding. Jagr also said last week he has a sore groin, but his comments would suggest a shoulder or rotator cuff injury. Jagr absorbed a hard check into the boards by the Sabres' Alexei Zhitnik in Game 1 in Buffalo on Thursday, but he said afterward he wasn't hurt on the play. Jagr was rammed into the boards shoulder-first. This is the third consecutive season Jagr has been bothered by an injury during the playoffs. He sat out four games in 1996 with a groin injury, then pulled a thigh muscle in the second round against Philadelphia last year. Jagr would play if he were "40 to 50 percent" of what he normally is, but said he isn't close to that. "I'd just be taking somebody's job who can do better than me," said Jagr, who was replaced by Josef Beranek and Rene Corbet in Game 2. "It wouldn't make any sense. I can go out there and play, but I would make the five guys out there be four guys on the ice. I don't think that's smart." Jagr wouldn't say if he expects to play in Game 4 Wednesday. "I got injured. I don't know what you guys want to hear, but when I'm ready, I'm going to play," he said. The Penguins have survived losing one of their big stars in the playoffs before. In 1992, Mario Lemieux's wrist was broken by a slash from the Rangers' Adam Graves and missed six games. Jagr, in only his second NHL season, took over to lead the Penguins to a major upset of New York and into the conference finals, when Lemieux returned. This time, it is Lemieux who hopes to keep the Penguins in the playoffs until Jagr can return. Jagr's decision not to play Saturday occurred shortly before game time and saw him become involved in an animated discussion with coach Ivan Hlinka outside the locker room. The two appeared to argue, with Jagr pointing the end of his stick toward Hlinka before the coach walked away. The two had disagreements early this season when Jagr fought against the defensive system Hlinka wanted to install. However, Jagr dismissed the matter Sunday. He said they were talking about the hockey world championships and whether Hlinka would again coach the Czech Olympic team, as he did in Nagano in 1998. Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories

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