This is not a crisis for the Penguins.

Barely qualifies as an inconvenience, really.

They will have to get by without No. 1 goalie Marc-Andre Fleury when Minnesota visits Mellon Arena at 7:08 tonight, and it's possible that an unspecified injury will prevent Fleury from playing another game or two after that.

Which means they'll be turning their goaltending duties over to a guy who, had he logged enough minutes to qualify, would have the best goals-against average and second-best save percentage in the NHL in 2008-09.

Now, no one is suggesting that Dany Sabourin should supplant Fleury as the Penguins' go-to goalie -- that's not going to happen, and it shouldn't -- but Sabourin has acquitted himself very nicely whenever he has been called upon this season.

He is 3-1, with a 1.68 goals-against average and .942 save percentage -- Fleury's numbers are 2.86 and .907 -- and has been virtually unbeatable in shootouts, stopping 13 of 14 shots when games stretch past overtime.

"I'm pretty happy," Sabourin said yesterday. "Since training camp, I've felt pretty good. I'm happy with how it's going so far."

The Penguins, in keeping with new NHL guidelines, declined to divulge the nature of Fleury's injury, but he appeared to hurt his leg or knee while making a save late in their 5-2 victory against Buffalo Saturday.

Whatever the particulars, the bottom line is that, according to coach Michel Therrien, Fleury's injury does not appear to be serious. Nothing, certainly, of a magnitude resembling the high ankle sprain that prevented him from playing for more than two months last season.

"He's day to day," Therrien said. "It's not a major injury, but we don't want to take any risks. We want to be really cautious with his injury."

Sabourin took over the top job after Fleury hurt his ankle in Calgary Dec. 6 and brought some pretty fair stats with him. At the time Fleury was injured, Sabourin was 5-6, with one shutout, and had given up more than three goals just once.

He stumbled almost immediately after Fleury was injured, however.

Sabourin played six games in a row and seven of eight and, after winning in his first two appearances, hit a 1-4 skid. That prompted Therrien to turn to Ty Conklin, who had been summoned from Wilkes-Barre to be the new No. 2, and Conklin responded with a performance that made him something of a folk hero in these parts.

Sabourin, meanwhile, returned to backup duty until Fleury returned and was the third goalie after that. He made just seven appearances in the final 47 games of the regular season and was nothing but an interested onlooker during the Penguins' surge to the Stanley Cup final.

Sabourin believes that experience, however unpleasant, could help when he has to step in for Fleury now, whether it's for a few days or, under other circumstances, a few months.

"I know it's different to be a No. 1," he said. "I'm glad I had the opportunity last year. For sure, I think I'm more ready than last year."

The Penguins are expected to recall goalie John Curry from their minor-league team in Wilkes-Barre to back up Sabourin tonight, although they also have the option of summoning David Brown from their ECHL affiliate in Wheeling.

One guy who won't be asked to handle the job is Joe Tuset, an assistant coach at Robert Morris who filled in for Fleury during yesterday's practice.

The Penguins contacted Colonials coach Derek Schooley about their need for a goaltender and, while NCAA regulations prohibit college players from being involved in the Penguins' workout, those rules don't apply to coaches.

Schooley briefed Tuset on the situation, and Tuset didn't hesitate, even though he hadn't pulled his pads on since May.

"I jumped at the opportunity," he said, "because it's not every day that you get to be out here with these guys that young kids idolize."