No Crosby, Jarry as Penguins try to eliminate Rangers in Game 6

The Penguins aim to eliminate the Rangers in Game 6, but they’ll need to do so without Sidney Crosby. Crosby headlines a daunting injury list for the Penguins heading into Game 6.

Beyond Sidney Crosby, the Penguins will be without these players against the Rangers in Game 6:

• Tristan Jarry. Every indication is that Louis Domingue will start again for Pittsburgh.
• Brian Dumoulin’s status has not changed.

In addition to Crosby, Jarry, and Dumoulin being ruled out for Game 6, Rickard Rakell is considered a game-time decision against the Rangers. Rakell has been sidelined since Game 1.

Going forward, there are some silver linings. While Crosby didn’t skate with the Penguins on Friday, he did get some work in on his own. Tristan Jarry also appears to be making some progress toward a return.

It’s also worth noting that, thanks to a previous Crosby injury, Evgeni Malkin developed some familiarity and chemistry with Jake Guentzel. The Athletic’s Josh Yohe noted that, 30 years ago, the Penguins prevailed with Mario Lemieux sidelined.

It was 30 years ago tonight that the Penguins eliminated the Rangers without the injured Mario Lemieux. Here is that team’s story, along with a request:
“I hope the city gets behind these guys tonight like they got behind us in ’92. That would be awesome.” https://t.co/TWraDk13P9

— Josh Yohe (@JoshYohe_PGH) May 13, 2022

Here’s what the Penguins’ lines looked like:

Here's how the lines look without Crosby:

Guentzel-Malkin-Rust
Heinen-Rodrigues-Kapanen
Zucker-Carter-McGinn
Boyle-Blueger-O’Connor
(Rakell did not take rushes)

The D-pairs are the same without Dumoulin:
Matheson-Letang
Pettersson-Marino
Friedman-Ruhwedel

— Pens Inside Scoop (@PensInsideScoop) May 13, 2022

Another thing worth noting: Evan Rodrigues has done some of his best work for the Penguins when the team elevated him. They might need his best, as it’s not totally fair to ask Malkin and a few others to do everything.

Crosby was injured by a Jacob Trouba hit, which Penguins coach Mike Sullivan clearly didn’t like.

Relatively speaking, the Rangers go into Game 6 against the Penguins fairly healthy. They have a real opportunity to force a Game 7.

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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at [e-mail] or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.