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...