Maybe Sidney Crosby wasn’t that close to playing in the Olympic gold-medal game after all.
The Pittsburgh Penguins announced on Wednesday that the team has placed captain Crosby on injured reserve and that he is expected to miss a minimum of four weeks due to the lower-body injury that he suffered while playing for Team Canada at the Olympics.
Crosby, who also served as captain for the Canadian men’s hockey team in Milano-Cortina, reportedly had been close to playing the gold-medal game against the U.S. after having suffered the injury in the team’s quarterfinal matchup with Czechia.
The 38-year-old Crosby had skated before both the semifinal game against Finland and the tournament finale, but was unable to play. In his absence, Oilers star Connor McDavid served as captain while Canada lost the gold-medal game in overtime.
Crosby said after the heartbreaking loss that if he had been able to play, he would have.
“It’s a gold-medal game, Olympics,” Crosby said, per TSN. “If I could play, then I’d be out there.
“It was a tough decision. In your head, you always want to be out there and find every way possible, but not at the expense of what needs to be done. And then watching how we played today, the guys played incredible.”
Crosby suffered the injury after taking a big hit from Czech defenceman Radko Gudas – who plays for the Anaheim Ducks in the NHL. After the two players collided near the boards, Gudas fell on top of Crosby, with the forward’s leg appearing to buckle.
After returning to the bench for a few minutes, Crosby headed back to the locker room and didn’t return to action for the remainder of the tournament.
How are the Penguins doing?
Crosby’s absence probably couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Penguins, who enter the NHL’s stretch run with a tenuous hold on a playoff spot.
Pittsburgh sits second in the Metropolitan Division with a one-point lead on the New York Islanders as play resumes on Wednesday after the Olympic break.
The Penguins are just five points up on the Columbus Blue Jackets, who were red-hot heading into the break.
Crosby, a two-time Hart Trophy winner and three-time Stanley Cup champion, has 27 goals and 32 assists for 59 points in 56 games so far this season. He is hoping to help lead the Pens back to the playoffs for the first time since the spring of 2022.
The team did get some positive news on Wednesday, however. The Penguins announced that star defenceman Kris Letang has been activated off the IR after being sidelined prior to the break with a foot injury.
He has three goals and 25 points in 50 games this season.