Devils' Langenbrunner Out 2 Games

The New Jersey Devils lost home-ice advantage Friday, and they lost their captain in the process. Game Two of their series against the Hurricanes went to Carolina in overtime. That leveled the series at a game apiece, and Game Three is Sunday night in Raleigh.

The Devils also found out that they'll play the two road games without captain Jamie Langenbrunner, who suffered a lower-body injury Friday and did not make the trip. Veteran Bobby Holik will take Langenbrunner's spot in the lineup, but not necessarily on the top line with Zach Parise and Travis Zajac.

The Devils are cautious about Langenbrunner's prognosis, and it doesn't sound like a slam dunk that he'll be back for Game Five Thursday, according to general manager Lou Lamoriello.

"He'll be out these next couple of games and we'll see how he is when we get back. But he's not out of the first round at this point."

"It's going to be a day-by-day situation, but he definitely will not be on this trip."

Lamoriello didn't want to speculate on whether Langenbrunner will be back for Game 5 on Thursday.

"It's too early to tell, so I don't want to mislead anyone," he said. "We certainly hope so."

Holik doesn't exactly sound like he's pleased about the situation, though you could argue he's more upset about being a healthy scratch for the first two games than he is about getting a spot in the lineup because the captain went down.

The Devils aren't saying exactly what happened to Langenbrunner, only that it was a "freak" deal. The veteran's a pretty tough guy, so it makes sense that he'll be back as soon as he can get out there.