Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin returned to practice on Sunday for the first time since their respective injuries. Crosby has been sidelined for one game after suffering a lower-body injury, Malkin has missed three games with a hand injury.
Dan Muse confirmed after practice that both were full-contact participants. Bryan Rust and Noel Acciari missed practice, though they were labeled "maintenance days" by Muse. Crosby centered the top line, and Malkin skated on the right side of the second line:
Anthony Mantha - Sidney Crosby - Rickard Rakell Egor Chinakhov - Tommy Novak - Evgeni Malkin Rutger McGroarty - Ben Kindel - Justin Brazeau Elmer Soderblom - Connor Dewar - Ville Koivunen/Kevin Hayes
Parker Wotherspoon - Erik Karlsson Sam Girard - Kris Letang Ryan Shea - Connor Clifton (Ryan Graves/Ilya Solovyov - Jack St. Ivany)
Muse said that Crosby, Rust and Acciari will all make the trip to Elmont, N.Y. for the Penguins' game against the Islanders on Monday, and that he still had to "firm that up with the training staff" regarding whether Malkin would travel.
It's worth noting that Malkin stayed out late with the extra players after practice, suggesting that he might not yet be ready to return, in which case Rust would just slot back in at wing in the top-six.
THE ASYLUM
Crosby, Malkin full participants
Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin returned to practice on Sunday for the first time since their respective injuries. Crosby has been sidelined for one game after suffering a lower-body injury, Malkin has missed three games with a hand injury.
Dan Muse confirmed after practice that both were full-contact participants. Bryan Rust and Noel Acciari missed practice, though they were labeled "maintenance days" by Muse. Crosby centered the top line, and Malkin skated on the right side of the second line:
Anthony Mantha - Sidney Crosby - Rickard Rakell
Egor Chinakhov - Tommy Novak - Evgeni Malkin
Rutger McGroarty - Ben Kindel - Justin Brazeau
Elmer Soderblom - Connor Dewar - Ville Koivunen/Kevin Hayes
Parker Wotherspoon - Erik Karlsson
Sam Girard - Kris Letang
Ryan Shea - Connor Clifton
(Ryan Graves/Ilya Solovyov - Jack St. Ivany)
Muse said that Crosby, Rust and Acciari will all make the trip to Elmont, N.Y. for the Penguins' game against the Islanders on Monday, and that he still had to "firm that up with the training staff" regarding whether Malkin would travel.
It's worth noting that Malkin stayed out late with the extra players after practice, suggesting that he might not yet be ready to return, in which case Rust would just slot back in at wing in the top-six.
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