IIRC he was told he lost his starting job and he then "excused" himself from the team which they reluctantly agreed to. Wouldn't be surprised to hear that he ran his mouth during his absence.
http://photogrammar.yale.edu/
US map:
http://photogrammar.yale.edu/map/
Buffalo area pics:
http://photogrammar.yale.edu/search/results.php?start=0&search=&pname=&lot=&van=&state=New%20York&county=Erie&city=&year_start=1939&month_start=0&year_stop=1943&month_stop=12
But he has in the 2 Pittsburgh games that I've seen in full.
That means somebody missed something or they thought they could do without a "starting caliber" corner.