Keeping up with the progress of Sidney Crosby’s injury has proven to be an exhausting task. He was sidelined on January 5th, 2011 with what was believed to be a concussion, but then returned almost ten months later only to play in eight games before having to sit out yet again. In those eight games, he went ballistic on the stat sheet, recording 12 points and leading everyone to believe that he was fully healed and returned to form.
Recently, there was speculation that Crosby may have suffered a neck fracture in addition to the potential concussion, something that would obviously keep him out of the game for even longer. In a statement issued by the Penguins this afternoon, doctors found that there is “no evidence of a past or present neck fracture, but Crosby is suffering from a soft-tissue injury of the neck.” The symptoms of this injury are supposedly very similar to that of a concussion, but the good news here is that this is treatable. With concussions, it’s hard to give a timeframe for when a player will be able to return, since it really just depends on whether or not the symptoms are still present. Since the injury is potentially not a concussion, his doctors are confident that he will eventually (the magic word) be symptom free and returning to the game.
In a press conference today, Crosby said that while he is “still dealing with symptoms, he’s feeling better than a couple of weeks ago and is happy about the news.” He also noted that the most important thing to take away from this diagnosis is that it is something that can be worked on. There is still a degree of uncertainty about whether or not this injury is the sole reason for the issues, but the fact that they are finally able to pinpoint something and start treating it is positive news for now.
So basically, it’s all still pretty vague, but if Sid’s feeling good that’s all that matters.
Via NHL.com
