With Bated Breath They Wait
The hockey world has been infused with an anxious excitement these past few days, and with very good reason. Sidney Crosby, the best hockey player in the world is reportedly "destroying" the workouts he is being given by the Pittsburgh Penguins training staff as he prepares to return from a concussion suffered in early January. With every passing day Crosby inches closer to returning, and whether you love him or despise him, Sidney Crosby is needed to make the NHL marketable, his talent is once in a generation and it has been missed these past nine weeks.
But there is reason for NHL fans to be cautious in their optimism. First of all, Crosby is returning from a major concussion, he will most definitely require a number of games to adjust to the high speed at which professional hockey is played (although knowing Crosby a hat trick on his first night back is completely plausible). Perhaps more importantly, this is Crosby's first ever major concussion, what will he be like upon his return? He is eating up the drills handed to him for breakfast, but how will he transition his world-class skill into his post concussion game? Will he be intimidated and afraid to go into the dirty spots? Not the Sidney Crosby that fans have watched grow over the past few years, but this is different, and the stakes are immeasurably higher this time around.
With ESPN's Pierre Lebrun reporting that Marc Savard is having memory problems this time around as he battles yet another concussion, Crosby must be profoundly aware that more is at stake than his playing career. Crosby need only look at great players who came before him who had their careers cut tragically short because of too many hits to the head, players such as Savard and Eric Lindros. Let's not pretend for a minute that they are anywhere near the level of skill and the quality of player that Sidney Crosby is, but that is what makes it all the more scarier. This league needs Sidney Crosby, not the other way around. Crosby will come back and he will score goals and make passes that seemed impossible, and move around defenders with the puck in a way that makes you think it's tied to his stick. But maybe those highlight reel goals will come in a slower fashion, the amazing assists may be a little more infrequent, and the dazzling deke's may only happen periodically.
Maybe Sidney Crosby won't be affected at all by the severe concussion he sustained this past January. Maybe he will reach his full potential and become the player we all thought he was, the player we all want him to be. However, we don't know if thats true, we don't know how good Sidney Crosby could have been, maybe his brain injury will fill him with a slight hesitation to battle in the corners, to fight for the puck below the goal line, to dig in while up against the boards.Who can tell how many points, how many amazing plays will be lost because of that? These are depressing thoughts to think, but what is even more depressing and what is even more scary is what is equally as likely to happen. Crosby won't lose that instinct to battle in the dirty areas, and one day he will be hit from behind, and struggle to focus on his surroundings. He will skate to the bench in a haze, where he will be rushed back into the dressing room where doctors will perform tests. They will determine that Crosby brain has been rattled yet again and he needs to sit out. For how long? Weeks? Months? Will he, like Savard struggle to remember moments from the past? Imagine a Sid the Kid who couldn't remember his Stanley Cup win? What about his golden goal?
Of course this is all rhetorical, and it may even be hyperbole. The truth is not one soul knows what will happen when Sidney Crosby returns. However the league, and all its fans await with anxiety, and with the hopes and prayers that Sid the Kid is back for good.
But there is reason for NHL fans to be cautious in their optimism. First of all, Crosby is returning from a major concussion, he will most definitely require a number of games to adjust to the high speed at which professional hockey is played (although knowing Crosby a hat trick on his first night back is completely plausible). Perhaps more importantly, this is Crosby's first ever major concussion, what will he be like upon his return? He is eating up the drills handed to him for breakfast, but how will he transition his world-class skill into his post concussion game? Will he be intimidated and afraid to go into the dirty spots? Not the Sidney Crosby that fans have watched grow over the past few years, but this is different, and the stakes are immeasurably higher this time around.
With ESPN's Pierre Lebrun reporting that Marc Savard is having memory problems this time around as he battles yet another concussion, Crosby must be profoundly aware that more is at stake than his playing career. Crosby need only look at great players who came before him who had their careers cut tragically short because of too many hits to the head, players such as Savard and Eric Lindros. Let's not pretend for a minute that they are anywhere near the level of skill and the quality of player that Sidney Crosby is, but that is what makes it all the more scarier. This league needs Sidney Crosby, not the other way around. Crosby will come back and he will score goals and make passes that seemed impossible, and move around defenders with the puck in a way that makes you think it's tied to his stick. But maybe those highlight reel goals will come in a slower fashion, the amazing assists may be a little more infrequent, and the dazzling deke's may only happen periodically.
Maybe Sidney Crosby won't be affected at all by the severe concussion he sustained this past January. Maybe he will reach his full potential and become the player we all thought he was, the player we all want him to be. However, we don't know if thats true, we don't know how good Sidney Crosby could have been, maybe his brain injury will fill him with a slight hesitation to battle in the corners, to fight for the puck below the goal line, to dig in while up against the boards.Who can tell how many points, how many amazing plays will be lost because of that? These are depressing thoughts to think, but what is even more depressing and what is even more scary is what is equally as likely to happen. Crosby won't lose that instinct to battle in the dirty areas, and one day he will be hit from behind, and struggle to focus on his surroundings. He will skate to the bench in a haze, where he will be rushed back into the dressing room where doctors will perform tests. They will determine that Crosby brain has been rattled yet again and he needs to sit out. For how long? Weeks? Months? Will he, like Savard struggle to remember moments from the past? Imagine a Sid the Kid who couldn't remember his Stanley Cup win? What about his golden goal?
Of course this is all rhetorical, and it may even be hyperbole. The truth is not one soul knows what will happen when Sidney Crosby returns. However the league, and all its fans await with anxiety, and with the hopes and prayers that Sid the Kid is back for good.
Actually really love this. Awesome job!
ReplyDeletewhat about those Leaf? Hope springs eternal
ReplyDelete