After dropping back-to-back games against the New York Rangers to let them back into the series, there seems to be some great news on the health front for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Sidney Crosby is practicing with the team on Saturday morning after sustaining a reported concussion during Game 5 in New York and subsequently missing Game 6.
Crosby saved his best hockey this season for the playoffs, notching nine points in five games, tied for the team lead with Jake Guentzel. It’s never good to see one of the best players of all time go down with an injury, but concussions are even scarier, especially with Crosby. He’s battled back from multiple hits to the head throughout his career to still maintain his status as one of the best of the best. The captain’s return to the lineup would be an incredible boost as they head into tomorrow’s Game 7 on the road at Madison Square Garden.
- That’s not all the good news today from Penguins practice. The Tribune-Review’s Seth Rorabaugh reports that ideal starting netminder Tristan Jarry is also practicing today, receiving the bulk of the work while fill-in Louis Domingue is primarily a spectator. Jarry, who had a .919 save percentage this season, hasn’t played since suffering a foot injury on April 15. Domingue has done as much as you’d expect a third-string netminder to do, guiding Pittsburgh to a 3-3 record with a .898 save percentage.
- Leon Draisaitl isn’t taking morning skate for the Edmonton Oilers, reports TSN’s Ryan Rishaug. While not necessarily an indication that he’ll miss tonight’s Game 7 against the Los Angeles Kings, it is surely confirmation that he isn’t playing at 100% health. He’s been dealing with an ankle injury throughout the series and, despite still managing eight points in six games, has been exposed defensively at numerous points during the series.
I’d like to get excited about all of this “good news” for the Penguins but somehow, I just can’t. I’ll be shocked if they win
Edm should shelter Drai and limit his minutes to o-zone situations only and PP
That’s a solid way to lose a hockey game.
Play him or don’t play him. If you are going to try to “shelter” one of your best players like that in a game 7, you might as well just go home.
so you’re solution is…not play one of your best players at all?
No. My solution is if he is healthy enough to play, you play him.
If he’s not healthy enough to play, don’t play him.
Hockey is too fluid a game to try this ‘offensive zone only’ nonsense.
That’s basically the Oilers jam though, score a bunch of goals and try to survive. It brought them this far, why change it up. It’s not like they have some big bodied defencemen in the back waiting for their chance to shut down.