PITTSBURGH — Sidney Crosby has a broken jaw and is out indefinitely after being hit in the mouth with a puck during a win against the Islanders on Saturday.
The Pittsburgh Penguins said on the team website yesterday that Crosby had surgery Saturday night, and there will be an update on his status later in the week.
Crosby, the NHL’s leading scorer, was struck in the face during the first period of the Penguins’ 2-0 win. Slow-motion replays showed multiple teeth flying out of his mouth after the puck struck him during his first shift. The team said Crosby had “major dental work” and will have more done later in the week.
The Penguins have won 15 straight games, and next play Buffalo tomorrow.
Crosby has 56 points (15 goals, 41 assists) and holds a 10-point lead in the scoring race. He has not missed a game yet this season after being limited to 22 regular-season games over the prior two calendar years because of concussion-like symptoms and neck issues after absorbing big hits in consecutive games Jan. 1 and Jan. 5, 2011.
Midway through his comeback season, Crosby said he was feeling so good he “doesn’t even think about” the risk of concussion or head or neck injury anymore after two years in which it dominated his life. Teammates expressed similar sentiments.
After Saturday’s game, coach Dan Bylsma did not rule out the possibility Crosby would undergo evaluation for a concussion.
“I think every time that type of thing happens to a player you think of that,” Bylsma said. “It doesn’t matter who it is. … You think about those things regardless of the player, yes.”
There is no indication, however, that Crosby sustained a concussion and the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, citing unidentified sources, reported Crosby is free of concussion symptoms.