Sidney Crosby is seeing a core specialist in Philadelphia to examine the injury he sustained Saturday night, a firsthand source informed DKPittsburghSports.com.
The Penguins' captain visited the specialist Monday, accompanied by team physician Dr. Dharmesh Vyas, at the Vincera Institute in Philadelphia, which, according to its website, focuses on injuries to athletes in the core area.
Per the site: "Tens of thousands of athletes of all skill levels have sought relief from pain stemming from core injuries at The Vincera Institute. Pain that ranges from nagging to debilitating, pain that effects performance, range of motion, ability to play at 100% or in some cases to lead a normal life and complete every day tasks. Regularly mistaken for 'sports hernias' or 'groin pulls,' core injuries often go untreated or misdiagnosed."
The lead physician there, Dr. William Meyers, is the one Crosby saw, according to the source.
I reported earlier Tuesday in my weekly Takes column that Crosby was believed to have had a core injury. As I wrote, if it's anything in the core area -- groin, hernia, etc. -- it's difficult to diagnose and, within that, difficult to determine the extent of the injury or the time expected to be missed if there's surgery. The most common procedure is for a sports hernia, which requires roughly six weeks of recovery. The Steelers' Bud Dupree had this done near the start of the 2016 NFL season and was back in less than two months.
In the second period Saturday, Crosby appeared uncomfortable when his skate caught on the ice after a one-handed shove from Chicago's Erik Gustafsson, then blocked a shot at the other end, also by Gustafsson:
Crosby immediately went to the Penguins' bench after the blocked shot, then right down the tunnel. About a half-hour after the game, the hockey staff of DKPittsburghSports.com saw Crosby leave the arena. He was not wearing any visible aids like a boot or a brace, but appeared to have a slight limp.
Crosby didn't accompany the Penguins on the team charter to New York, where they'll face the Rangers tonight. Mike Sullivan declined Tuesday morning at Madison Square Garden to say whether Crosby had been ruled out for the next game, Friday in Newark, N.J., against the Devils.
