Penguins Crosby Cleared To Return, Malkin Still Out

On Thursday the Pittsburgh Penguins announced that superstars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin would miss the start of training camp due to injury. Both were sustained during pre-camp preparations, not as part of any organized team activities.

Pens general manager Jim Rutherford classified both injuries as minor and said the action was precautionary more than anything. But he didn’t elaborate on the nature of the injuries or provide details on how they were sustained.

Although nothing has changed with regard to Malkin, today Crosby was cleared to practice and, according to an AP report, “didn’t appear hurt while taking the ice Friday morning for the team’s first official workout of camp.”

During practice Crosby was not wearing the red jersey designated for no-contact during that time. He skated with the team for 50 minutes, but exited prior a short 3-on-3 scrimmage.

Speaking to the media after practice, Crosby was in good spirits and spoke optimistically of his own health and a Penguins team that is still in transition, having replaced both the GM and head coach over the offseason after another disappointing early exit from the playoffs.

“I’m just happy to [be out there] and hopefully I can put a string of days together here,” Crosby said. “I think the guys looked like they were skating well and that practice had a great pace to it. That has a lot to do with the drills and things like that too. So, that’s the way we want to play and I think that’s really what practice kind of indicated.”

Crosby also noted a discernible difference between the First practice on Friday and those of seasons past. “I think this time, everyone’s just excited and eager and guys want to prove themselves,” he said. “So, you expect it to be pretty intense and pretty quick early.”

No word on when to expect Malkin to return to the ice.