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Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Sports Reporter Josh Yohe can be reached via e-mail or at 412-664-9161 x1975
By Josh Yohe
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
Published: Sunday, January 6, 2013, 10:14 a.m.
It was the best wake-up call Sidney Crosby has ever received.
Crosby‘s phone rang around 5 a.m. on Sunday, and it was Penguins team representative Craig Adams on the other line, telling hockey‘s greatest player that the lockout was over.
“I‘m just so happy,” Crosby said. “So, so happy. It was quite a marathon, to say the least. I knew things were going well when I went to bed, but I didn‘t really know what to expect.”
Crosby confirmed that he was getting close to making a move to Europe, should the NHL season be cancelled. He has missed 101 games during the past two years because of concussion problems and wasn‘t about to miss an entire season at age 25, right in his prime.
Now, he can focus on training camp in Pittsburgh.
“Oh yeah, I was considering it,” Crosby said. “I had to think long and hard about it. I hadn‘t played much hockey in a couple of years. I want to play. Now, I get to play in Pittsburgh, and that‘s what I wanted all along.”
Crosby will enter the season with a chip on his shoulder. He remains disgusted by how his team‘s season ended last season, with a first round loss against the team he hates most, the Philadelphia Flyers.
“After what happened last year,” Crosby said, “you know, it‘s something we all realize can‘t happen again. We have much higher expectations than that.”
Crosby spoke at length about his sympathy for what fans have gone through during the lockout, which lasted nearly four months. NHL fans missed the 2004-05 season, which was lost because of a lockout.
He hopes they will remain loyal to the Penguins and the league.
“Hopefully everyone comes back,” Crosby said. “I understand people are frustrated. It‘s more than understandable for people to be frustrated. I don‘t blame them at all. I just hope everyone is excited by the news and by the idea of hockey being back. I‘m sure there are a lot of happy people out there, but I understand there are those who are frustrated and discouraged. I understand it. I get that. I just hope they can find it in themselves to come back and support us. Their support means an awful lot to us.”
Crosby will have to deal with the most hectic schedule of his career. The season will consist of either 48 or 50 games and must be complete by some point in April.
“It‘s like that for everyone but it‘s definitely going to be a challenge,” he said. “There are challenges in any schedule. It was like that in the Olympic year (2009-10) too. You just have to make the most of it and be successful. I‘m well rested, which is good. But we‘ll be playing a lot. So, I‘ll have to get used to it.”
Crosby was hoping to have a preseason game or two to get his timing back, but time likely won‘t permit that to happen.
Instead, hockey will be back when the regular season begins, around a week or 10 days from now. And the face of the league is ready for action.
“I can‘t wait,” he said. “It‘s been a long time coming, and we‘re all happy. We‘ve been waiting for this day.”
Copyright © 2013 — Trib Total Media
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