The Pittsburgh Penguins received some much-needed good news with the announcement that captain Sidney Crosby will return to the lineup Wednesday after missing nearly a week with an upper-body injury.
Crosby was injured Nov. 13 in a loss to the Devils. Since that time the Penguins have gone 0-2-1 to fall into last place in the Metropolitan Division. They weren't exactly tearing it up before he got hurt.
"I think the thing for us that's probably been a little more difficult is it's not necessarily the same thing. We've found different ways to lose games," Crosby said Monday after taking part in his first full-contact practice since going down. "We've probably corrected one thing and something else has been the factor in another game we've lost. It's tough to win. It's tight, but we just have to make sure we're limiting our mistakes and we're giving ourselves the best chance."
Penguins coach Mike Sullivan stressed that Crosby's injury was not a concussion, an issue that has plagued Crosby throughout his career.
Crosby, 31, has 8 goals and 11 assists in 16 games.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.