Penguins Get Nine Back, But Still No Crosby

The Pittsburgh Penguins have officially announced that the nine players held out of training camp because they were ruled “unfit to play” are back and have been cleared to re-join the team.

While a number of teams are down players, perhaps no team was hit harder by absences than the Penguins. With that many guys out of the lineup, plus the news that Sidney Crosby was mysteriously missing from practice yet again, having those players back is huge.

The team will have to do some work to get caught up as the start of play is just over one week away, but there should be time to get their feet wet.

Sidney Crosby (@penguins) can become the seventh player in NHL history to captain one franchise to four or more Stanley Cups and first since Wayne Gretzky from 1983-84 to 1987-88 (4x w/ EDM).

MTL vs PIT #NHLStats: https://t.co/U6E1v5Qjjl pic.twitter.com/dXjtc2M1l2

— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) July 18, 2020

Crosby Still Out

Unfortunately, the team did not get good news when it comes to star center Sidney Crosby. With still no reason given, the hope is that there’s not a serious matter at play that would cause him to miss play-in games.

The Athletic’s Rob Rossi did eliminate any rumors or speculation regarding COVID-19. According to Rossi’s sources the decision for Crosby to leave the ice was  “only a precaution,” and Crosby reportedly said that something felt “something off a little bit.” 

That doesn’t sound like an injury or an illness, but more a nagging something that if he had to play, probably could.

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