Pens open Cup defence without Crosby
INJURY: Pittsburgh won’t take chances after captain concussed at practice Friday
Like his Stanley Cup-winning teammates, Sidney Crosby was looking forward to the Pittsburgh Penguins’ ceremonial ring dinner Monday night. Then he got his bell rung. And now the start of a season that was filled with such enthusiasm, such anticipation, such promise is in limbo. At least for Sidney Crosby.
“All I can tell you is this: we’re not going to put Sidney Crosby back into the lineup until he’s feeling 100 per cent and not any time before that,” general manager Jim Rutherford told Postmedia Monday night. “We are not going to take any chances.”
Such is the timeline involving concussions. You can’t just say a player will be ready to come back in a few days, a few weeks, a few months. No one knows for certain. Not the doctors. Not the Penguins. Not Rutherford. And not Crosby himself. Not until he feels like himself again.
Crosby has been here before. He missed 101 games in the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons from concussion-like symptoms stemming from a hit he absorbed from the Washington Capitals’ David Steckel on Jan. 1, 2011.
The argument could be made the past six months have seen the Penguins captain play the best hockey of his career since he was nailed by Steckel.
Eleven months ago, the common question was what’s wrong with Crosby? Off to a moribund start in 2015-16, there were serious concerns about whether he was on the downside of his career. But a December coaching change with Mike Sullivan replacing Mike Johnston behind the Pittsburgh bench seemed to revive Crosby, who would go on to captain the Penguins to a Stanley Cup title and Team Canada to a World Cup crown, all the while being named MVP of both events.
Crosby, it seemed, was on top of the hockey world.
But fate can be cruel indeed. And sure enough, it struck during practice Friday when Crosby was concussed during just his second on-ice workout since leading Canada to its World Cup crown.
As Rutherford and Sullivan are quick to point out, this no longer is about Team Canada or the Penguins. This is about Crosby returning to lead a normal life, however long that might take.
Crosby said after practice Friday he intended to play in Saturday’s exhibition at PPG Paints Arena. But when he arrived at the rink for the game, he felt off. Having been though this before, he would know when something was amiss.
“He came to the rink and that morning reported to our medical staff that he wasn’t feeling well,” Sullivan told reporters Monday. “We went from there. We took him out of the lineup and (today) he went through a concussion protocol and he was diagnosed with a concussion.
“So our medical staff will take the appropriate measures moving forward.”
When it comes to head injuries, Crosby is quite confident in the Penguins doctors, trainers and specialists. In March 2013, he said as much while discussing a concussion teammate Evgeni Malkin had suffered a month earlier.
“Everyone did a great job,” Crosby said at the time. “The way (Malkin) slammed into (the boards), it could have been much worse.
“I think right away you kind of watch what happens and if he gets symptoms. Sometimes you don’t get them until a day or two later.”
Now it’s Crosby who is suffering from the same symptoms.
“We take all of the concussions that our players get afflicted with seriously,” Sullivan said Monday. “So our medical staff follows strict guidelines. There’s a certain protocol and that’s how our team operates. We always have our players’ best interest (in mind) and health is the priority. Regardless of who the player is, that’s how we feel. We’ve always felt that way. This one will be no different.”
Sullivan was asked if he sensed any frustration from Crosby regarding the concussion.
“Injuries are a part of our game,” he said. “Part of the challenge for us is to try to help Sid get healthy as quickly as possible. That’s what we’re going to do. We don’t look at it any other way. For me, frustration at this point is a useless emotion.”
The Penguins will open their regular season Thursday against the Capitals, the night the Stanley Cup banner will be raised.
“Obviously Sid is our captain, but in the absence of Sid in the lineup we have strong leadership and veteran guys, whether they wear a letter or don’t wear a letter, that have really provided the necessary leadership. So we’re fortunate we have the type of people in the locker-room that we have,” Sullivan said.
As for Crosby, the waiting game continues. Having felt well enough to attend the Penguins fan fest Sunday, he won’t be back on blades until he thinks he is ready to return without any physical risk.
Until then, all anyone can do is hope for a recovery. Any recovery.