Article content

PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is feeling for Ottawa Senators winger Clarke MacArthur.

Crosby has also been in concussion limbo land during his career. The Penguins star was sidelined 11 months during the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons and missed the start of the current season following a training camp head injury, giving him a solid understanding of what MacArthur is going through during his recovery.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Sidney Crosby can relate to Clarke MacArthur's situation Back to video

“It’s difficult, it tests your patience,” said Crosby, who has been outstanding since returning to the Penguins lineup, with 16 goals and 10 assists in 19 games before playing the Senators here Monday. “For him, he has been through it (before). It’s a difficult process. Hopefully he can be back out there soon.”

MacArthur has not played an NHL game since being concussed in October, 2015. After an exhaustive recovery process last season, he suffered another concussion – his fourth in 18 months – when hit by Senators minor league defenceman Patrick Sieloff during the club’s first intrasquad scrimmage in September.

MacArthur is travelling and practicing with the team, tentatively aiming for an early January return, but he still needs medical clearance before he can play again.

“Everyone has different symptoms and goes through different things,” said Crosby, who played with MacArthur on Canada’s gold medal winning 2005 world junior team. “With him, he has had multiple concussions and that’s even more reason to be smart and be careful and make sure he’s ready before he comes back.”

kwarren@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/Citizenkwarren