Chouinard Is Out, McDonald Questionable

The Mighty Ducks’ breaks after the Olympic break haven’t been good ones.

They lost their first game, to Minnesota, 5-3, Wednesday.

They lost center Marc Chouinard, who had his left arm in a sling because of a shoulder injury suffered in that game. They probably have lost center Andy McDonald, who was still groggy after suffering a head injury in the second period against the Wild.

So the Ducks, who are already thin at center, probably will be without McDonald, their top-line center, and Chouinard, their best faceoff man, when they play Chicago on Sunday.

Chouinard is definitely a no-go, Coach Bryan Murray said Thursday. He was injured after colliding with the Wild’s Matt Johnson, although X-rays were negative, Murray said.

McDonald’s injury is more uncertain. He sat out the third period and underwent a CT scan after the game, but Murray was not calling the injury a concussion. McDonald will be reevaluated before the Ducks leave for Chicago on Saturday.

“Andy got whacked from behind, and he wasn’t feeling very good after the game,” Murray said. “Right now, we’re going to go day to day.”

Murray said that there were no plans to call any players up from minor league Cincinnati.

The Ducks did get center Steve Rucchin back Wednesday. He had missed 44 games with a stress fracture in his left ankle. But Rucchin is far from 100%.

“Let’s just say I can only feel better next game,” said Rucchin, who played 18 minutes in Wednesday’s game. “That was the worst I have played in 400-plus NHL games. Three-and-a-half months are a long time to be out. The ankle still doesn’t feel very good, but it’s only going to get better.”

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Paul Kariya and Jeff Friesen missed practice Thursday.

Kariya was given the day off, Murray said, to rest after his hectic Olympic experience. Friesen sat out to rest a sore left ankle but said he would play Sunday.

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Rumor-mill alert: Toronto Maple Leaf goalie Curtis Joseph will be sidelined six to eight weeks, which immediately started speculation that Duck goalie Steve Shields could start making travel plans.

Shields, whom Duck General Manager Pierre Gauthier has on the trading block, would be a good fit. He has playoff experience and, although he is making $2 million his season, will be a free agent after the season.

But before anyone starts packing bags, there are other goalies on the trading block.

Carolina’s Tom Barrasso, Calgary’s Mike Vernon, Florida’s Trevor Kidd and Tampa Bay’s Kevin Weekes are also being mentioned as possibilities, should the Maple Leafs make a move.

For now, the Maple Leafs will go with goalie Corey Schwab. Sebastien Centomo was recalled from the minor leagues to back up Schwab. Maple Leaf officials are expected to wait a couple of weeks before deciding if they need to find a veteran goalie.