The mumps breakout continues to spread throughout the NHL, as Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby is the latest player to be sidelined by the virus. Crosby was held out of action as a precaution on Saturday, and the Penguins confirmed the superstar has the mumps on Sunday.
Penguins make it official, Sidney Crosby sidelined with mumpsDays after appearing before media with a very visibly swollen face, which led some to believe he had the mumps, Sidney Crosby is officially sidelined by the virus.
The 27-year-old Pittsburgh Penguins superstar has had his share of medical issues throughout his career, and this is yet another setback for one of the game’s best and brightest stars. Speculation began about Crosby have the illness after he missed practice on Thursday and, upon returning on Friday, had what appeared to be swollen glands.
Following Crosby meeting with the media, Penguins GM Jim Rutherford released a statement that the Penguins captain would be kept out of action for the weekend to be safe.
“There is no indication at this time that this is the mumps, but we are going to hold him out as a precaution,” Penguins GM Jim Rutherford said at the time. Test results were supposed to take a few days, but the Penguins called an early Sunday press conference and confirmed the NHL’s latest case of mumps.
There is no certain timeline on when Crosby will be able to return to the lineup, but chances are he will be kept away from the team for several days. The team announced he is not going to play in Monday’s game against Tampa Bay, but that doctors believe he should, “be through the infectious period by Monday.”
Concern may now turn to Crosby’s teammates, however, as he practiced with the team when he had the virus. Hopefully the Penguins won’t become the latest team to have more than one player sidelined with mumps.