An injury that seemed minor is now becoming more serious as Nick Schmaltz is expected to miss his third consecutive game for the Coyotes.

Arizona Coyotes forward Nick Schmaltz is still expected to be out of the lineup with an upper-body injury on Monday against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Schmaltz left the Coyotes’ Tuesday night game against the Calgary Flames in the second period and ultimately did not return.

Coach André Tourigny previously said that Schmaltz was ‘hour-to-hour’ and it was not a serious injury, but he has now missed two games and looks like he will be out for a third.

“I don’t think he will be in Monday,” Tourigny said. “It’s day-to-day, but is it day-to-day after that? I don’t know.”

Tourigny did not show the same reassurance about Schmaltz’s injury as he did just a few days ago and the more games he misses, the more concerning this situation gets.

The 27-year-old has a lengthy injury history, so this is really nothing new.

If this injury is actually more serious than expected, the Coyotes do have over a week off for the All-Star break coming up soon which will not only be good for Schmaltz but also some other players that may be nursing injuries.

In 42 games this season, Schmaltz has 13 goals, 15 assists and 28 points.