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EspañolSidney Crosby‘s Olympic injury will spill into the NHL season.
The Pittsburgh Penguins captain will miss at least four weeks after appearing to hurt his knee in Milan, the team announced Wednesday.
Crosby was injured during Canada’s quarterfinal against Czechia after taking two awkward hits on one shift, including a check into the boards near centre ice from defenceman Radko Gudas.
He missed the rest of that game in addition to the semifinals and final, though he was a game-time decision in the latter and reportedly took morning skate.
“I wasn’t able to go out there and do what I needed to do in order to help the team,” Crosby later explained. ”So at that point, you’ve got to make a decision that’s best for the group. Not an easy one.”
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Canada went on to lose the gold-medal game 2-1 in overtime against the U.S.
Crosby, 38, left Italy with two goals and four assists in four games, plus a silver medal to go with his golds from 2010 and 2014.
His Penguins, meanwhile, are in the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race as they return to action Thursday against Jack Hughes and the New Jersey Devils.
Pittsburgh (29-15-12) sits second in the Metropolitan Division with 70 points, but is just four points clear of the Columbus Blue Jackets, who occupy fourth in the division and ninth in the conference.
Crosby has enjoyed another strong season in the NHL, with 27 goals and 32 assists while playing all 56 games for the Penguins.
The team placed him on injured reserve Wednesday while activating defenceman Kris Letang.
Perhaps eyeing the future, the Penguins traded defenceman Brett Kulak to the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday for fellow blue-liner Sam Girard and a second-round pick.
Crosby is among three players who will miss NHL time due to injuries suffered at the Olympics. Finnish Dallas Stars forward Mikko Rantanen is out at least two weeks, while Swiss Los Angeles Kings forward Kevin Fiala is done for the season.
