Sidney Crosby Injury: Updates on Penguins Star's Lower Body and Return

Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby picked up a lower-body injury against the Carolina Hurricanes on Dec. 19. However, he has been cleared to return to the ice.

Continue for updates.

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Crosby Active vs. Wild

Saturday, Dec. 26

The Penguins announced Crosby will play against the Minnesota Wild.

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Crosby Is Vital to Penguins' Success 

Crosby's injury history is well documented by now. Although he remained relatively healthy over the last two seasons, he missed 113 games between 2010 and 2013. First came the concussion that severely limited his time on the ice in 2010-11 and 2011-12, then he required oral surgery after taking a puck to the mouth.

Still, calling Crosby injury-prone would be extremely harsh since those two issues weren't at all related, and you want to see teams be particularly cautious with players when it comes to concussions and their lingering effects.

Making the playoffs for a 10th straight season isn't a sure thing for the Penguins this year, even with a healthy Crosby. Their blue line is a major question mark, which means the likes of Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel will need to pour in the goals.

The Penguins have also struggled this season, limping out to a 15-14-3 record and are currently mired in a five-game losing streak.

Having added Kessel in the offseason, the Penguins at least provided some form of insurance in the event of an injury to Crosby. The Canadian is impossible to replace in terms of his ability, but the combination of Malkin and Kessel will still strike fear into the hearts of opposing teams.