NHL: Crosby’s Concussion Continues to Keep Him Out

Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who led the NHL in scoring when he was knocked out of the lineup with a concussion on January 6, described his healing and progress as “at a slower rate than I’d want it to be,” during a recent interview. On top of that, arguably the best player in hockey couldn’t venture a guess as to when he would step onto the ice again.

Thursday’s Penguins-Los Angeles Kings match-up will mark Crosby’s 15th missed game.

Originally, Crosby took hits to the head in back-to-back games on January 1st and January 5th. Since then, the young superstar has avoided exercising until a time when he can determine himself to be symptom-free.

“I’m getting better. It’s just slow. That’s the tough part. The progression, everything is improving, but it’s just at a slower rate than I’d want it to be,” he said. “But that’s kind of out of my control. You just kind of hope that with time and hopefully the quicker the better.”

When asked whether sitting out the rest of the season was a possibility, Crosby didn’t rule it out.

That could happen, but am I sitting here packing it in? No,” he said Thursday. “I hope I’m back and geez, I hope I finish the year, but that’s the thing with these things. You don’t know. There’s no timeframe, like I said.

“I’m expecting to play this year, so I’m sure there’s a thousand different things being said out there and that’s one of them, but I expect to be playing.”

While concussions are nothing new in hockey, or any sport, really – the injury to such a high-profile talent has raised endless discussions on whether everything that can be done to protect athletes’ mental health is being done.