The Return of the Kid

Playoffs are just around the corner, and as the NHL season winds down, the importance of the games kicks up. This is true even for the Pittsburgh Penguins, who currently sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with 14 games left. Of the Penguins 68 games thus far, they have only played a total of 10 with all 3 of their star centres, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal and Sidney Crosby. Even with Malkin ripping up the scoring charts, Crosby's name has come up just as often in the hockey world. Tonight, Crosby will make his second major comeback of the season. The last one was a great success, as he had a 4 point night against the lowly New York Islanders. Tonight, Crosby returns on a much bigger stage, with much bigger risks. Crosby will come back tonight as his Penguins face the number 1 team in the Eastern conference, the New York Rangers. Not only are the Rangers a highly skilled team with great goal tending, they are also known for their toughness. Head coach John Tortorella ensures that the Rangers do not get pushed around. This could be bad news for Sid. While Sid was rarely faced with any physical challenges in his return against the Islanders, tonight's match up will likely be very different. The Rangers will likely challenge Crosby hard, let by physical defensemen such as Marc Staal and Dan Girardi. For Crosby's sake, I hope his concussion is fully healed and I hope he is not rushing back for the playoffs. He is certainly a huge part of the NHL, and if Sid gets hurt again, it would be a huge blow to the entire world of hockey.