The Pittsburgh Penguins experienced another early exit from the Stanley Cup playoffs this past season, falling to the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Now, it appears their star was not 100 percent healthy during the playoff run.
Sidney Crosby, who managed just one goal in the Penguins’ 13 playoff games, was playing with a wrist injury that “impeded his performance in the postseason,” a source close to the center told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Dave Molinari on Tuesday.
Crosby reportedly will undergo arthroscopic surgery within the next few days to repair the injury. The source, who called the status of Crosby’s wrist “terrible,” told Molinari that the procedure “is not major, but (Crosby couldn’t) play the same way” with the injury.
After tallying six points (all assists) in an opening-round win over the Columbus Blue Jackets, Crosby was held without a point in five of the Penguins’ seven games against the Rangers, including the final three, as Pittsburgh blew a 3-1 series lead.
This came after the 26-year-old was a scoring force during the regular season, leading the NHL with 104 points en route to earning his second Hart Trophy.
Crosby, who has yet to confirm the reported injury, is expected to be ready to play by the time the 2014-15 season opens in October.
