Painful memories: Mario Lemieux, Jerome Bettis, Dan Marino know how Sidney Crosby felt missing Game 6

Sidney Crosby’s suspected concussion, apparently the result of a high hit from New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba in Game 5 of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ first-round playoff series, forced him to miss the 5-3 loss Friday in Game 6.

Injuries and medical misfortune have forced other Pittsburgh athletes to miss – or hobble through — important games in the past.

Here are a few:

Pirates pitcher Vernon Law, 1960 World Series

On the evening of Sept. 25, 1960, the champagne was flowing freely in the visiting clubhouse at Milwaukee County Stadium and, later, on the Pirates bus to the airport.

And why not?

The Pirates had just clinched the National League pennant, their first since 1927.

The Pirates didn’t win that day, losing to the Braves in 10 innings, but the second-place St. Louis Cardinals eliminated themselves when they were shut out by the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

The loss didn’t dampen the Pirates’ celebratory mood. In the midst of their merrymaking, Vernon Law’s teammates playfully restrained him while backup catcher Bob Oldis yanked the shoes off his feet.

Harmless hijinks? Hardly.

The prank resulted in Law, who won 20 games and the Cy Young Award that year, suffering an injury to his left ankle only 11 days before Game 1 of the World Series against the mighty New York Yankees.

No matter.

Law started Games 1, 4 and 7 and was the winning pitcher in the first two by scores of 6-4 and 3-2.

He gave up 10 hits in the opener at Forbes Field, including Roger Maris’ home run. He lasted 6⅓ innings in Game 4 in Yankee Stadium, allowing a Moose Skowron home run. He also contributed an RBI double to help his cause. Elroy Face saved both games.

Law started Game 7 on a painfully throbbing ankle, according to an article on the Society of Baseball Research website, and he made it through five innings before manager Danny Murtaugh turned to his bullpen. Long after Law left the game, the Pirates won the championship, 10-9, with two dramatic, late-inning home runs by Hal Smith and Bill Mazeroski.

Law’s personal drama was only beginning.

Later, driving home to Utah (where he was an elder in the Mormon Church, thus earning the nickname Deacon), he felt weakness in his right arm that ended up lasting all winter.

Turned out, Law had torn muscles in the back of his shoulder while favoring his bad ankle during the World Series. He appeared in only 11 games in 1961 with one complete game, compared to a total of 38 over the previous two seasons. He did not regain the same prominent role in the rotation until 1964. He was a big winner again only once when he won 17 in 1965. He retired after the ‘67 season.

Steelers running back Jerome Bettis, 2001/2002 playoff game vs. Baltimore Ravens

Jerome Bettis’ groin had healed, the evidence glaringly obvious during pregame warmups while he high-stepped with his buddy and running back partner Chris Fuamatu-Ma’afala.

Back in the locker room, Bettis wanted one final safeguard after missing the previous seven weeks — a painkilling injection.

Sadly, the needle struck a nerve, numbing Bettis’ leg and making him unable to play in the game that afternoon, the first Steelers playoff game at Heinz Field.

Teammates found him in tears in the locker room, but they had his back. Amos Zereoue ran for 63 yards and two touchdowns, Kordell Stewart and Fuamatu-Ma’afala each added 30 more yards and the Steelers advanced to the AFC Championship Game with a 27-10 victory.

Bettis did play in the title game, but he carried only nine times for 8 yards in a 24-17 loss to the New England Patriots.

Steelers running backs Franco Harris, Rocky Bleier, 1976 AFC Championship Game

Many consider the 1976 Steelers the best team in franchise history, and here’s a big reason why: The Steel Curtain defense was practically impenetrable in the second half of the year. In the team’s last nine games, the Steelers allowed a grand total of 28 points and recorded five shutouts. A Super Bowl three-peat was very much in the cards.

But in a first-round playoff game against the Baltimore Colts, Franco Harris suffered a rib injury and Rocky Bleier hurt his foot. Both were 1,000-yard rushers in the regular season but neither played in the AFC Championship Game against the rival Oakland Raiders.

The hamstrung Steelers got little going on offense in a 24-7 loss. Starting tailback Reggie Harrison ran 11 times for 44 yards. Frenchy Fuqua carried eight times for 24 yards. Terry Bradshaw was 14 for 35 for 176 yards and an interception.

Kicker Roy Gerela, incidentally, also missed the game with an injury.

In hindsight, it’s hard to find a Steelers fan who would complain about the four Super Bowl trophies the team claimed in a six-year span. But it easily could have been five, and the One for the Thumb movement never would have started.

Penguins center Mario Lemieux, broken hand, second round of the 1992 NHL playoffs.

Almost precisely 30 years before Crosby’s misfortune, Mario Lemieux suffered a painful broken hand when he was slashed by the New York Rangers’ Adam Graves in Game 2 of the Penguins’ second-round series. Same venue, Madison Square Garden.

In the previous series — seven games against the Washington Capitals — Lemieux scored 17 points in the final six.

After winning Game 1, the Penguins lost the next two — and Lemieux. The 6-5 overtime loss in Game 3 was the Penguins’ last of the postseason.

They won the next three games to defeat the Rangers in six before sweeping the Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks in four each to win their second consecutive Stanley Cup.

Lemieux returned for Game 2 of the Wales Conference finals against the Bruins — three games earlier than expected — leading the Penguins with two goals and an assist in a 5-2 victory.

The day before, he said he probably wouldn’t play until Game 5. Then, on the morning of Game 2, he tried to decoy the Bruins by dressing only in sweat clothes and a baseball hat during the game-day skate.

“We knew he was going to play,” Bruins coach Rick Bowness said.

Pitt quarterback Dan Marino, shoulder injury, 1981

Jackie Sherrill admitted that Pitt’s 17-0 victory at West Virginia on Oct. 10, 1981, was one of the most unusual of his career.

With Dan Marino sitting out with a shoulder injury suffered the week before while throwing six touchdown passes against South Carolina, Sherrill called on Dan Daniels to replace the future Pro Football Hall of Famer.

Daniels did what he was told — hand off to Bryan Thomas and Wayne DiBartola. Daniels attempted only six passes and completed none, with one interception.

DiBartola rushed 30 times for 103 yards; Thomas added 99 and two touchdowns on 18 carries.

“This is the most conservative I have ever played in my life,” Sherrill said.

Pitt’s defense shut down West Virginia quarterback and Rhodes Scholar candidate Oliver Luck, who was picked off three times — two by Tom Flynn.

The victory gave No. 4 Pitt the longest major college winning streak in the nation (11 games) while West Virginia lost for the first time after a 4-0 start.

The crowd of 54,280 at Mountaineer Field was the largest at the time to watch a sporting event in the state.

Pitt point guard Levance Fields, sprained ankle, 2007-2008

Pitt won its first 11 games that season and climbed to No. 6 in the Associated Press poll before losing at Dayton, 80-55, on Dec. 29.

Fields was hurt in the game and missed the next 12, but Pitt managed to win eight on the way to a Big East Tournament championship, a 27-victory season and a No. 17 ranking in the final poll.