Monday, January 21, 2008

High Ankle Sprain???

Pens fans are still mourning the loss of their captain to an apparent high ankle sprain. Note the word 'apparent'.

Docs are not exactly sure what's wrong with Crosby's leg, other than the fact that it hurts like hell. They initially thought it was a high ankle sprain, but they need to do more tests to confirm that diagnosis.

As we await the results of the MRI, we can only guess how much time he will miss. Will it be 4 weeks? Only the crazy-optimistic people are thinking that's a possibility at this point. Will it be 8 weeks? Even this may seem a little optimistic for some.

Heck, maybe he'll miss the rest of the season, and I think everyone needs to start thinking that's a distinct possibility.

I'm not saying that we should be the ultimate pessimists - we just need to prepare ourselves for the possibility that he won't be back this season and rally behind the players who are not injured.

Saturday's win in Montreal was one of the most important wins of the season. Just look at everything going against them: Pittsburgh rarely wins in Montreal (and Michel Therrien has never won in Montreal since becoming head coach of the Pens), and the Pens have never won without Sid in the lineup, and Montreal has the 2nd best power play in the league - a PP that has burned many a team. Not only did the Pens get the win, but they also held the Canadiens scoreless, thanks to Sabourin.

It's amazing to see what the team has done in the last few months. They have managed to find a way to win despite losing their top goalie, top defenceman, several energy guys, and now their best player.

In spite of it all, I can't help but wonder if losing Crosby will ultimately be the straw that broke the camel's back.

In order for the winning trend to continue, several things need to happen: Sykora needs to become a sniper, Staal needs to break out of his funk, Malkin needs to carry the team on his back, Laraque needs to keep playing to the best of his ability (and those were some pretty sweet moves on Saturday night), Conk and Sabou need to keep impersonating brick walls, and (most importantly) the team needs to tighten up defensively. Can this happen??

The team now knows that they are not just Crosby and Company, but can they keep that momentum going into the next few months?

Only time will tell, but this could be the 'best' thing to happen to the Pens (if you can find a silver lining when losing your franchise player).

Facing adversity will make a team stronger and hungrier.

Just as the WJC gold medal winning team...

7 comments:

DaBich said...

I can't wait to see the game tonight, just to see if our guys CAN/WILL step up to take over the slack. I sure hope they do!

Ashley said...

I can't wait for the game tonight either.

I can't wait for the big matchup...

KRIS LETANG VS. MIKE GREEN!!! yeah!!!

I was thinking, perhaps what the team needs the most right now (other than healthy players) is to have a super-supportive fanbase. Wouldn't it be great if Pens fans at home (and on the road) cheered them on like it was Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals and the Pens were annihilating a hated team (like the Flyers, even though that matchup is currently impossible)?

Stoosh had an idea over at Pensblog - get a crew of 50 people, dressed in black and gold, and march in with bagpipes. How great would that be? If I was a player, support like that would give me chills and make me play better than ever before.

Stoosh - if you're reading, you need to get a plan in place! I expect to see highlights on SportsCentre by the end of next week! haha

Man, I wish I was in Pittsburgh so that I could help organize something crazy like that...

DaBich said...

Ahh..gotta love Stoosh, that's a GREAT idea....someone send me the ticket and I'm there! I'm broke, so can't buy tickets now...LOL

The game was awesome...we may have lost in SO, but DAYUM, it was a great effort.
I still think the deciding factor was in not pulling Sabourin sooner. 4 soft goals...UGH! And after that great game he had the other night! Go figure.

Stoosh said...

Check it out...

Bagpipes.

Kilts.

If there's one thing better than the sheer unbridled awesomeness that is a website actually called "Kilts-N-Stuff", it's the fact that I can buy a set of bagpipes for like $200.

Perhaps the March on the Mellon Arena will be on after all.

DaBich said...

OK, Stoosh, you wear kilts????

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