After Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was sidelined with a concussion he suffered during the Winter Classic last season, no one in the Steel City immediately hit the panic button. But then days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, and before Pens fans knew it, they were heading into the 2010-11 playoffs with their captain still on the shelf.
To make matters worse, sniper Evgeni Malkin tore up his right knee on Feb. 4, putting him on the shelf for the remainder of the season as well.
Yet despite the Pens not having their two best players for the majority of the second half of the season, Pittsburgh managed to finish second in the Atlantic Division and fourth in the Eastern Conference with 49 wins and 106 points. Dan Bylsma rightfully won the Jack Adams Award for skillfully guiding his depleted team to the finish line.
Unfortunately, it looks as though he may have to do it again.
Malkin has spent the offseason in Russia, working out to strengthen his surgically repaired right knee, and now he is ready to go. Crosby, however, is still suffering from post-concussion symptoms, with no definite timetable on his return.
Despite the uncertainty of Crosby’s return, the Pens proved last season that they can win without the greatest player in the game. Pascal Dupuis, Tyler Kennedy, Dustin Jeffrey, Craig Adams and Arron Asham all elevated their game in their captain’s absence, and the same will expected of them in 2012. Pittsburgh did lose depth over the summer as Maxime Talbot signed a five-year contract to play in Philadelphia and Mike Rupp inked a three-year deal with the New York Rangers. The Pens also said goodbye to Chris Conner, Alex Kovalev, Mike Comrie and Eric Godard.
Pittsbrugh did manage to fill some of those holes with the signings of sniper Steve Sullivan, enforcer Steve MacIntyre and veteran forward Jason Williams. Although the 37-year-old Sullivan was limited to 44 games last season with Nashville, he still managed to net 23 goals and 50 points. “Big Mac” MacIntyre will fill the enforcer role that Godard had in previous seasons, and Williams, who has had an up-and-down NHL career, does have 225 points in 447 games, so he could bring some much-needed scoring depth.
However, despite these additions, there is no replacing Crosby. As good as the Pens managed to be without him on the ice, the only chance they have of being Cup contenders is with him on the ice. Pittsburgh has a solidified defensive corps (Brooks Orpik, Kris Letang, Paul Martin, Zbynek Michalek, Matt Niskanen, Ben Lovejoy) and Marc-Andre Fleury between the pipes. But unless No. 87 can return and No. 71 can stay healthy, don’t except the Pens to get past the second round of the playoffs.
