Crosby rules himself out of Penguins' game Sunday

Saying he hopes for more contact in practice, Penguins center and captain Sidney Crosby ruled himself out out for Sunday's home game against Boston.

"Hopefully, it's soon," he said after practice today of returning to the lineup.

After Sunday, the Penguins don't play until Thursday against the Rangers in New York, giving Crosby a chance to get more practice days.

"Getting a good amount of contact is the biggest test right now," he said.

Crosby, 24, last played Dec. 5 and has played just eight games over the past 14 months because of problems related to a concussion and neck injury.

He got clearance for contact Tuesday and had been skating before that.

"This is something you don't want to mess around with, especially this time of year when [games] are even more physical," Crosby said.

Shelly Anderson: shanderson@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1721 or Twitter @pgshelly

First published on March 10, 2012 at 1:11 pm