The Pittsburgh Penguins\u2019 practice Wednesday in Cranberry was a highly energetic affair.<\/p>\n
Coach Dan Muse skated his players fairly hard for a session that lasted approximately an hour and a half.<\/p>\n
Even with that demanding pace, those on the ice were upbeat and buoyant as they attended to their tasks, largely oblivious to the outside world (or at least the portions of the planet beyond the confines of the 200-by-85-foot sheet of ice they were skating on).<\/p>\n
But half a world away, things became potentially dire for the Penguins.<\/p>\n
Captain Sidney Crosby \u2014 perhaps the most consequential figure in the sport who doesn\u2019t (yet) have a plaque in the Hockey Hall of Fame \u2014 suffered an undisclosed injury while skating for Canada in the Olympics being staged in Milan.<\/p>\n
Crosby got tangled up near the boards with Czechia defenseman Radko Gudas during the second period and fell to the ice awkwardly.<\/p>\n
Videos of the collision were limited, particularly due to the International Olympic Committee\u2019s archaic rules regarding video rights, but Crosby\u2019s right leg appeared to buckle when bracing for contact from Gudas, who initiated the check.<\/p>\n
Crosby looked to be laboring after the check. Czechia forward Martin Necas and Gudas then crunched Crosby along the boards.<\/p>\n
The 38-year-old Crosby retreated to the bench and was evaluated by a Hockey Canada staffer before heading to the dressing room.<\/p>\n
Canada rallied to claim a 4-3 overtime victory in the quarterfinal round contest. Following the win, Canada coach Jon Cooper did not offer a substantive update on Crosby\u2019s status while speaking with reporters in Milan.<\/p>\n
ESPN reported Crosby will undergo imaging on the injury.<\/p>\n
\u201cRight now, I don\u2019t know,\u201d Cooper told ESPN about Crosby\u2019s status for Friday\u2019s semifinals. \u201cI don\u2019t even have my poker face on either, because I honestly don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cooper added that Crosby\u2019s absence served as motivation.<\/p>\n
\u201c(Crosby) couldn\u2019t come out for the third, but he did address the players, and I think that was a big thing coming in,\u201d Cooper told ESPN. \u201cIf we lose this game, we didn\u2019t want this to be Sid\u2019s last game at this Olympics. So it was big motivator for the guys coming out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Crosby\u2019s mishap unfolded as the Penguins\u2019 non-Olympians practiced. Players and coaches largely found out about their captain\u2019s ordeal as they departed the ice during the second intermission.<\/p>\n
Muse was limited in what he could offer as he spoke with reporters in front of a television with the game on.<\/p>\n
\u201cFirst I heard of anything was when I was walking down the hallway here,\u201d Muse said. \u201cYou\u2019re always keeping tabs on everything. We\u2019ll see where things are at.\u201d<\/p>\n
The NHL has been an on-and-off participant in the Olympics since 1998.<\/p>\n
During the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea, the league declined to make players available due in part to a dispute over insurance between the NHL, the IOC and the International Ice Hockey Federation, the sport\u2019s governing body.<\/p>\n
That impasse was partially sparked by Canada forward John Tavares \u2014 then of the New York Islanders \u2014 suffering a season-ending left knee injury during the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia.<\/p>\n