No “Woe is Me”



photo by Lisa Ovens

• 

by Jan Snyder



Seeing Malkin writhing in pain on the Consol Arena ice last night made it pretty clear that this was a bad injury. So when the news came down today that Geno has a torn MCL and a torn ACL, fans weren’t that surprised, but shocked, none the less.

In his first game back after missing several with an injury to the other leg and a sinus infection, Malkin was playing well when this unfortunate incident occurred in the second period. Being “Sid-less” and “Geno-less” was tough, but the boys hung in there and managed to win four games without either superstar. Jordan Staal’s return has made a big difference and we were hoping it was just a matter of time until the two big guys came back.

But Sid is still dealing with concussion issues and now Geno is gone, maybe for the year. So what happens now? Will Shero find a way to pull out a blockbuster trade to get another forward or winger? Oh, I forgot to mention that forward Mark Letestu, who has been a big part of the team too, is also down with a long term injury.

One thing is for sure – there will be no quit in this team or their fans. In the immortal words of former Steeler head coach Chuck Noll, “We play with who we have” (or something like that!) Taking another cue from the Steelers, the Pens have kept winning without important pieces of the team in place. When the Steeler quarterback couldn’t play for the first four games, the rest of the team hung together and won three out of those first four. The Pens have now won five in a row since before the All Star break and will have to keep winning until Sid gets back, Geno gets back, a trade is made – whatever. I have supreme faith in them and in the Coach. He will have them ready to play and they will play hard.

No one will feel sorry for us, least of all the Flyers, Caps, Rangers, etc. Each team deals with injuries, we are just dealing with two of our biggest stars going down at the same time. But, never fear! The fans will do their part and the Pens will certainly do theirs. We’ll all get through it and hope for the best during each game.

Let’s Go, Pens and Here We Go, Steelers, Here We Go!