Penguins' Sidney Crosby has a long history of working back from injuries

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Sidney Crosby has plenty of practice at it. After all, he has had to do it multiple times throughout his career.

Coming back from a long-term injury is nothing new for the Penguins captain.

He has done it four times previously in his career and is in the midst of doing it for a fifth occasion.

(Note: For the sake of this exercise, we define “long-term injury” as anything that causes a player to miss 10 or more games).

Crosby’s ailments have ranged from the mundane, such as the core muscle injury he is dealing with, or the right ankle sprain he suffered in 2008.

And, of course, anyone who has followed the Penguins with any interest over the past decade is familiar with the serious maladies he encountered, such as his concussion woes early in the 2010s as well as the broken jaw he suffered in 2013.

Regardless of the injury, what’s the biggest obstacle Crosby has had to overcome after previous layoffs?

“I think just the timing,” he said Saturday after a practice in Scottsdale, Ariz. “Everything seems to happen pretty quick out there. When you’re playing games, the game seems to slow down a little bit. But if you miss an extended period of time, I think it’s just your timing, and plays tend to develop a little quicker. That just comes from playing games.”

Here is a look at the previous four times Crosby worked his way back from long-term injuries:

March 4, 2008: Missed 21 games (high ankle sprain)

Crosby was injured when he crashed into the end boards of Mellon Arena feet-first during a 3-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Jan. 18.

By the time he returned to the ice — in a 2-0 road win against the Lightning — the Penguins were a dramatically different team, having acquired forwards Pascal Dupuis and Marian Hossa from the Atlanta Thrashers and defenseman Hal Gill from the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Crosby looked as if he had not missed a step as he recorded nine points (four goals, five assists) in seven games, eventually found chemistry with Hossa in the postseason and helped lead the Penguins to their first Stanley Cup Final in 16 years.

Nov. 21, 2011: Missed 68 games, including seven postseason games, (concussion)

Crosby initially was injured Jan. 1 during a 3-1 loss in the Winter Classic at Heinz Field when Washing Capitals forward David Steckel struck him in the head. Four nights later, in an 8-1 win at Consol Energy Center, Lightning forward Victor Hedman bumped Crosby from behind into the end boards, causing Crosby’s head to strike the glass.

The next night, in Montreal, coach Dan Bylsma announced Crosby would miss that game because of a mild concussion. As it turned out, Crosby would miss the next 10 months because of this injury.

Once he came back, Crosby roared out of the gate with a four-point (two goals, two assists) effort in a 5-0 defeat of the New York Islanders at Consol Energy Center.

That success was fleeting, however, as Crosby would play only eight games before his concussion woes resurfaced.

March 15, 2012: Missed 40 games (concussion)

Crosby was sidelined for more than three months because of his lingering head issues.

When he returned for a 5-2 road win against the New York Rangers, the Penguins eased him back into the lineup by using more as a third-line center between Matt Cooke and Tyler Kennedy. That assignment netted him two assists.

Crosby eventually returned to his status as one of the team’s top two centers — Evgeni Malkin was in the midst of his signature Hart Memorial Trophy-winning season — and scored a robust 25 points in his final 14 games of 2011-12.

In the postseason, Crosby and the Penguins were embarrassed in a wild six-game first-round series by the Flyers.

March 3, 2013 - Missed 13 games, including one postseason game (broken jaw)

During the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season, the Penguins were blessed with tons of salary cap space and, in the words of general manager, went “all in” for the Stanley Cup. Part of that strategy was trading for NHL great Jarome Iginla, presumably to have him play on Crosby’s line.

But during Iginla’s debut, a 2-0 win against the Islanders at Consol Energy Center, Crosby was struck in the face by a deflected slap shot from Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik.

Any hopes of seeing what Crosby could do with one of the NHL’s greatest power forwards were quickly dashed.

Crosby, who also lost a number of teeth, did not return until Game 2 of a a first-round series with Islanders. And because of Crosby’s preference or Bylsma’s reluctance — or a combination of the two — Dupuis and Chris Kunitz remained on Crosby’s line while Iginla was shoehorned into awkward fits on the second or third lines.

By his immense standards, Crosby was merely adequate in the postseason with 15 points (seven goals, eight assists) in 14 games. But the Penguins — who had loaded up prior the trade deadline with the acquisitions of Iginla, forwards Brenden Morrow, Jussi Jokinen and defenseman Douglas Murray — were swept meekly in the Eastern Conference final by the Boston Bruins.

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