Sidney Crosby says he's good to go for Canada at 4 Nations after missing Penguins games with injury

BROSSARD, Quebec — After missing Pittsburgh's final two games before the NHL break for the 4 Nations Face-Off, Sidney Crosby took part in Canada's first practice Monday and declared himself good to go.

When it comes to a rare chance to play in an international tournament with the best players in the world, it was going to take more than a banged-up arm to keep Crosby out, though the past several days included plenty of work to make sure it was safe to get on the ice.

"I've talked to docs here and had some good dialogue with the coaches and just seeing where I was at," Crosby said in his first public comments since getting sandwiched between New Jersey's Erik Haula and Luke Hughes last week and skating away favoring his left arm. ''There's been a lot of questions. A lot of, 'How are you feeling?' the last five days, so I'm excited just to get into a routine here and get back to normal.''

Crosby is the captain again after helping Canada win the 2016 World Cup of Hockey and take gold at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. And, of course, he scored the winning goal on home ice at the 2010 Vancouver Games.

Suffice it to say, his teammates were happy to have him after cringing at the injury.

''All of us would have been really bummed if he wasn't here,'' said reigning league MVP Nathan MacKinnon, who grew up in the same Nova Scotia town of Cole Harbour that Crosby is from. "It means a lot. I think he looks great, and I think he feels pretty healthy. But if he's not, then he's the last guy I'm worried about in terms of toughness.''

Coach Jon Cooper stopped short of definitively saying Crosby would play in Canada's 4 Nations opener Wednesday night against Sweden, but his opening practice was one of many signs pointing in that direction. Crosby centered a line with MacKinnon and 2023 Stanley Cup-winning Vegas winger Mark Stone.

''We would not have put him in a position where he was going to get hurt or re-aggravate his injury,'' Cooper said. "We're not going to put him in a position that's going to put Team Canada in jeopardy or the Pittsburgh Penguins. Check all those boxes off, now it's Sidney Crosby playing in the tournament. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. Exactly when? It could be Wednesday night. But he's definitely playing.''

Crosby's presence in spite of the injury, Stone said, ''shows he really wants to be here, really wants to be a part of this opportunity.'' Given the Penguins are tied for last place, it's also a chance to play some meaningful hockey.

"I wanted to play the games prior to the break, and it wasn't really an option given what happened," Crosby said. "Every opportunity you can, whether it's playing for Pittsburgh or playing for Canada, you don't want to miss games. This is an awesome opportunity, something I haven't done in a long time. I wanted to be part of this group and obviously also wanted to make sure that I can play at the level that you need to to compete here. Everybody seemed comfortable with that, and I feel good about it.''

One person not consulted on how comfortable he feels is Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan, whose place behind the bench for the United States caused him to cede his role in decision-making to general manager Kyle Dubas, who is on Canada's management team.

''For obvious reasons, I wasn't a central figure in that process,'' Sullivan said, adding the Penguins and their doctors consider Crosby's health the top priority. ''Participating in this tournament means the world to him, and for all those reasons I'm hopeful and we're all hopeful that he has the ability to participate. I know he's in good hands with the medical people that are around him and the people that are around him that are helping him through this process.''

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