Penguins center Jordan Staal has been cleared to begin skating and is going through individual drills this afternoon.
Staal recovering from a grade III MCL tear, is nearing the four week mark of his injury. The original timeframe for Staal’s injury was 4-6 weeks and he’s believed to remain on par with that timetable

Also skating this afternoon is Simon Despres (knee sprain) and Sidney Crosby. Once healthy, Despres is expected to be sent down to Wilkes Barre.
Crosby who apparently is fully healed from a cracked C1 vertebrae that was never diagnosed, has been skating for about two weeks now
Crosby is not expected to practice with his teammates when they hit the ice at 4:00 pm