Penguins' Sidney Crosby 'whole lot closer' to making season debut

Fans of the Pittsburgh Penguins were understandably concerned to learn ahead of the weekend that superstar Sidney Crosby seemingly wasn't nearing making his season debut as he worked to recover from wrist surgery he underwent on Sept. 8.

Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan delivered a positive update about the situation on Monday. 

According to Wes Crosby of the NHL's website, Sullivan told reporters his captain is "a whole lot closer" to being back on the ice to face opposing teams. 

"Obviously, we want to get Sid in the lineup as quickly as we possibly can," Sullivan added during his comments. "He's that much of a difference-maker for us. But we also want to make sure that we do it in a safe manner. That's an important aspect of it as well. We'll rely and trust on our medical team." 

As much as Crosby adds to the squad simply by serving as an available option, the Penguins haven't appeared to suffer all that much during his unexpected absence. Pittsburgh improved to 3-0-2 on the young season via Saturday's impressive 7-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs and will host the 2-2-1 Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday. 

The Penguins defeated the Lightning 6-2 in the season opener back on Oct. 12.