Crosby's situation simpler than it appears
-
Penguins captain Sidney Crosby has been out since early January.
Share with others:
The Penguins were fresh off one of their most satisfying victories in recent memory, and coach Dan Bylsma stepped to the lectern Thursday morning at Consol Energy Center to field questions.
Would it be about James Neal's double-overtime goal?
Or possible lineup changes?
No, it remained the same as most days: Any change with Sidney Crosby?
Bylsma opened his answer with the oft-repeated, "There is no timetable," then expounded a bit more than usual.
"If you were under the impression that he was moving closer ... he's got to pass the next stage of what he can do," Bylsma said. "That has not happened yet. Again, that's his contact with the doctors and what's prescribed for on- and off-ice activities. Some days, those are on the ice. Sometimes, they're off. Sometimes, it's both."
Crosby, out with a concussion since the first week of January, has been practicing with the Penguins for most of the past three weeks, although he is not permitted contact. He stayed off the ice this past Friday and Saturday, then again Thursday after the team returned from Tampa.
That level of activity -- as well as all kinds of video footage of Crosby looking dazzling in drills -- has led to thick speculation that a Crosby return is imminent, but Bylsma's words Thursday made clear anew that this is not the case.
"He continues to keep going," Bylsma said. "We need to see him progress further down the road before any kind of timetable is talked about."
The next step in that progression, as the Penguins have stated often, would be getting cleared for contact in practices.
The speculation has bordered on conspiracy theories in some cases, ranging from Crosby simply hanging around the team as a decoy, to Crosby secretly engaging in full-contact workouts in anticipation of surprising a playoff opponent, to material even Oliver Stone would find laughable.
First Published April 22, 2011 12:00 am
