As the official Pittsburgh Penguins Twitter account put it, “Sidney Crosby is back on the ice. We repeat, Sidney Crosby is back on the ice.”
And now Penguins’ fans can take a deep breath.
When news first leaked that Crosby had left a practice part way through and it wasn’t clear why, Penguins’ fans, media, and the hockey world got a little nervous. What would these playoffs be like if one of the best players and biggest draws wasn’t a part of it?
That might have been jumping the gun a little, but because the NHL has mandated that teams can’t talk about why players are missing, most assume the worst.
Crosby back is great news, rules out COVID-19 and suggests that if there was any sort of injury, it isn’t serious.
Crosby’s Status
Penguins assistant coach Jacques Martin held an interview in French with RDS and let fans in where Crosby is at and if there’s any additional reasons to be concerned. The news was quite positive. He said:
“The NHL Return to Play protocol forces us to remain quiet on the nature of injuries, however, I think I am allowed to say whilst trying to respect the rules that there is no worries when it comes to Crosby’s health and that he should join us back in practice in the next few days. There is still a lot of time left before our first game against the Canadiens on August 1st.”
Penguins Get More Good News
One of the teams hit hardest by missing players, the Penguins added two more names to the skate today. Patric Hornqvist and Juuso Riikola are practiced with the main group after being held out of training camp as a precaution. Both were cleared yesterday to join the team.
Next: Pastrnak and Kase Miss More of Camp, Returns Uncertain
