The Pittsburgh Penguins have already dealt with a litany of injuries this season, but none as significant as this one. The team announced Thursday that Sidney Crosby has undergone what it called a “successful core muscle injury repair” and will be out a minimum of six weeks. Crosby has been dealing with a sports hernia since training camp.

The Penguins have already been without Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang for points this season, but obviously neither means as much to that team as Crosby. Despite dealing with the sports hernia, Crosby still leads the team with 17 points in 17 games.

Pittsburgh currently sits fourth in the Metropolitan Division with a record of 10-6-2. Just two years removed from their last Stanley Cup, an aging Penguins roster faced scrutiny heading into the season over whether the team was good enough to keep up in a competitive Metropolitan Division, especially in the wake of getting swept by the New York Islanders in the first round of the playoffs in 2019. Though it is still early, losing Crosby for such a significant period of time while the team sits in the middle of the standings could torpedo their chances of returning to the playoffs.

But don’t dismiss the Penguins just yet.

Injuries are nothing new for Crosby who has only once in his career played a full 82 games. In his 13 seasons prior to this year, he has been limited to fewer than 55 games three times, not including the lockout-shortened season. In all three seasons, Pittsburgh still made the playoffs.

MORE CAPITALS NEWS: