Pittsburgh Penguins fans might be wise not to ask the question: “Can it get any worse?”
The answer’s just about always “Yes.”
Sunday presented the latest evidence, as the team announced that Sidney Crosby is day-to-day with a lower-body injury. As you likely know, this word comes a day after the Penguins lost their fifth straight game, with Mike Sullivan still lacking a win as their new head coach.
Coach Sullivan on Crosby: "Sid has a lower-body injury. Right now, his status is day-to-day."
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 20, 2015
Woof, that’s a paragraph loaded with sadness. Almost a factory of sadness, even.
Allow a few bits of mild optimism, then.
Yes, this isn’t good. Some might even cite this as evidence to why No. 87 has suffered from such a puzzling lack of offense.
Could the Penguins just be picking a smart time to give Crosby a much-needed breather, though?
During this holiday week, the Penguins will get a big break. They face the Blue Jackets in Pittsburgh and then go on a siesta until a back-to-back set on Saturday and Sunday.
Wouldn’t that be the perfect time to sit their embattled leader?
No, this isn’t a good thing. Even so, it might not be such a bad situation in the big picture.