Backstrom to see Vail hip surgeon; Zidlicky to rehab without surgery; No Sid-Zids rematch tonight

Afternoon from Pittsburgh.

Lots of news out of the Wild today.

Niklas Backstrom will stay off the ice for at least the next few days and head to Vail, Colo., early next week to see hip specialist Marc Phillipon, the surgeon who repaired his torn labrum at the end of the 2008-09 season and the same doctor who's operated on Josh Harding and Marian Gaborik.

Backstrom injured that same left hip New Year's Eve against the Nashville Predators and has backed up Jose Theodore ever since. Backstrom said he's hoping it's not the same problem two years ago ("you never know, he said.) and he'll find out "Monday or Tuesday."

Backstrom aggravated the hip during practice at Harvard.

"You can do it probably for a month or two. But you don't want to do it for four, five, six months" he said.

But the Wild will shut down Backstrom for now. It has recalled Anton Khudobin, who may make his second career start tomorrow night at home against the Dallas Stars.

But you'll probably be able to figure it out, too. If Theodore gets a heavy workload tonight, similar to the one Backstrom got in Pittsburgh last year, you can bet Khudobin starts. In fact, I think it's very likely. With Backstrom hurt, potentially seriously, you don't want to risk Theodore now, especially with three games in four nights (Wild plays in Nashville on Tuesday).

In other news, GM Chuck Fletcher said defenseman Marek Zidlicky will not have surgery on what I'm hearing is a separated shoulder. Fletcher said he'll rehab for four to six weeks, and if it works, he should be close to returning by the end of that window. If it doesn't work, the Wild will know toward the end of that window and then reevaluate its options.

Same lineup tonight vs. Pittsburgh. Antti Miettinen will not play. Even though he's been out with a charleyhorse, now he's come down with the flu and wasn't at the rink this morning. Richards assumes he probably won't play tomorrow night against the Stars, his former team.

Jared Spurgeon will be scratched.

Sidney Crosby addressed the media today.

Crosby is out with a concussion, saying he's felt "off, a little sick" and has had headaches after taking two hits, one from David Steckel in the New Year's Night Winter Classic, the other by Victor Hedman against Tampa Bay.

Crosby said he didn't feel right throughout the Lightning game. He said he won't rush coming back and wants to make sure all symptoms subside so this doesn't happen again.

Crosby was critical of both hits, saying they were direct shots to his head and he didn't have the puck.

"I didn't like them," Crosby said. "You talk about head shots and dealing with them, and they've been something that's been pretty big points of interest with everybody. We talk about blindside, and that's a big word, unsuspecting player. There's no puck there (on) both (hits) – and direct hit to the head on both of them. If you want to go through the criteria I think they fit all those.

"I know it's a fast game and I think if anybody understands it's a fast game – I've been hit a thousand times – but when you get hit like that there's nothing you can do, there's no way you can protect yourself. Those are things that hopefully [the NHL] pays more attention to. It's easy to say that being in this situation."

Wild went bowling yesterday. Darby Hendrickson's team won, with Miettinen, Kevin Gorg and Brad Staubitz, who bowled a 189 in the Final. Before that, Pierre-Marc Bouchard had the best score in the 180s.