Ottawa Senators playmaker Jason Spezza was not part of team practice on Monday and will likely have to wait until the end of the week before he's ready to return to the lineup.
According to the Ottawa Sun, Spezza's not expected to play Thursday against the Tampa Bay Lightning, marking the third straight game he'll miss with a suspected back injury that the team has officially labeled as an "upper body" problem.
"He's doubtful for Thursday," head coach Cory Clouston told The Sun.
Spezza has eight assists in 10 games, but is still looking for his first goal of the season.
The Senators did receive some good news Monday, learning that the team's top defenceman, Anton Volchenkov, is only going to be out 10 days to two weeks with an elbow injury he suffered in Wednesday's 4-3 road win over Florida.
"The MRI was positive, there's just some damage to some ligaments," Clouston told The Sun. "It was actually very positive, so we're hoping 10 days."
The Senators have dropped their last two games to see their record fall to 6-4-1-1 on the season.
With files from The Ottawa Sun.