By Michael Traikos
https://torontosun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/traikos-sidney-crosby-still-impressive-as-he-evolves-his-game
January 27, 2019
Sidney Crosby #87 of the Pittsburgh Penguins poses after winning the MVP award during the 2019 Honda NHL All-Star Game at SAP Center on January 26, 2019 in San Jose, California.
(Bruce Bennett/Getty Images North America)
SAN JOSE — It was at the very end of a Sidney Crosby’s news conference for winning MVP honours at the All-Star Game, when a thick-accented reporter asked what it felt like to be one of the best players in hockey.
Crosby chuckled.
“Uh, that’s a tough one,” he said. “I’m happy to be in the conversation still, I’ll put it that way. As long as I can be in that conversation, it means I’m doing something right.”
A couple of years ago, when Crosby was winning back-to-back Stanley Cup championships and playoff MVPs, as well as leading the league in goals, you would not have added the disclaimer “one of the.” He was The Best — period.
Now, he’s got company.
Now there’s Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews and Elias Pettersson, as well as Johnny Gaudreau and Nathan MacKinnon. Now, in a league where nine of top-10 scorers are 25 or younger, Sid The Kid has suddenly become the old guy.
Which is why what Crosby and Alex Ovechkin are doing this season has been particularly impressive.
Ovechkin, who once again leads the Rocket Richard Trophy race with 37 goals, is on pace for a 60-goal season. Crosby is also playing arguably his best hockey, ranking amongst the top-15 in scoring with 57 points in 45 games — a pace unseen since he won both the Art Ross and Hart Trophies with 104 points in 2013-14.
That Crosby is producing this way on a line with Jake Guentzel and Dominik Simon as his linemates — and we worry that McDavid has no one to play with — has made it all the more impressive. The Penguins, who were one of the worst teams in the conference a couple of months ago and are currently holding onto the final wild card spot in the East, have had their struggles this season. But Crosby has practically willed them into contention with a two-way game that has reminded GM Jim Rutherford of a late-era Steve Yzerman.
“Part of what happens to these players — and it kind of started with Yzerman, where he was getting lots of points every year, but the team wasn’t winning. And that’s when he adjusted his game to be the overall player and the team guy to win championships,” Rutherford told Postmedia News in October. “And I see that as the same way with Sid.”
Though Crosby was not one of the three finalists for the Selke Trophy in the PHWA’s midseason awards released last week — I had him No. 1 on my ballot — he has been gaining more and more recognition for his underrated defensive play. He has a plus-19 rating while matching up against the other teams’ top lines, as well as a 56.4 winning face-off percentage, and 43 of his 57 points have come in even-strength situations.
“Yeah, I feel pretty good about my game. I feel like the consistency has been there,” he said. “As far as the Selke (an award he has yet to win), I’d like to be in the conversation for sure. I mean, I think your play has to earn that. I definitely want to be known as a player who’s responsible defensively and I want to be good offensively, but do it the right way. And I think for the most part this year that’s been the case.”
So we really shouldn’t be surprised that Crosby scored four goals and four assists in a pair of games at the All-Star Game on Saturday night, helping the Central Division win the 3-on-3 tournament. But it was impressive just the same, considering that a nasty stomach bug had forced him to miss the skills competition and pretty well kept him quarantined in his hotel room for most of the weekend.
“Maybe he is still sick — he could have had like 10 goals tonight,” Penguins teammate Kris Letang said of Crosby’s performance. “I don’t know. That’s how special he is.”
“I was literally laughing on the ice, because it was almost too easy,” said Mathew Barzal, who played on a line with Crosby and Letang. “He was just always open, and you just hand it off to him when you’re in trouble.”
Make no mistake, winning MVP meant something to Crosby. Not because he wanted a new Honda SUV and a share of the $1-million in prize money that went to the winning team or that the award was one of the few things he had yet to win in his Hall of Fame-worthy career.
No, it was simpler than that.
At a time when McDavid and others are nipping at his heels, Crosby wanted to show the world that he was still The Best — not just one of the best. After last weekend, he at the very least proved that he’s still in the conversation.
“We’re here to have a good time, but at the end of the day it’s pretty unique to be surrounded by some of the best players in the league and you want to put on a good show,” he said. “You’re certainly right, it’s getting younger. It’s scary coming to these (events). After a few years, you start to realize you’re much more the older guy and it’s a different role … like I said, it’s different being in this position where maybe it wouldn’t have been a few years ago.”
OLDER GUYS PROVING THAT AGE IS JUST A NUMBER
Sidney Crosby is playing perhaps his best hockey at the age of 31. And while no one is going to suggest that 30 has become the new 20, he isn’t the only so-called veteran who is turning back the clock.
From Blake Wheeler and Alex Ovechkin to Pekka Rinne and Mark Giordano, here are several players who are showing that life doesn’t end at 30.
Blake Wheeler, 32
The late-blooming NHL star has only nine goals this season. But the Jets winger ranks amongst the top-10 in scoring, thanks to his 52 assists — second only to Nikita Kucherov (56).
The late-blooming NHL star has only nine goals this season. But the Jets winger ranks amongst the top-10 in scoring, thanks to his 52 assists — second only to Nikita Kucherov (56).
Alex Ovechkin, 32
This was the year when everyone thought Patrik Laine would take over as the NHL’s top sniper. Instead, Ovechkin (37 goals in 50 games) keeps putting the puck in at a level that is astounding.
This was the year when everyone thought Patrik Laine would take over as the NHL’s top sniper. Instead, Ovechkin (37 goals in 50 games) keeps putting the puck in at a level that is astounding.
Brent Burns, 33
The 2017 Norris Trophy winner leads the Sharks — and NHL defencemen — with 55 points in 52 games, which is pretty good considering he’s teammates with Erik Karlsson.
The 2017 Norris Trophy winner leads the Sharks — and NHL defencemen — with 55 points in 52 games, which is pretty good considering he’s teammates with Erik Karlsson.
Mark Giordano, 35
The Flames defenceman was named the midseason winner of the Norris Trophy, largely because he has 52 points in 49 games, as well as a league-leading plus-29 rating.
The Flames defenceman was named the midseason winner of the Norris Trophy, largely because he has 52 points in 49 games, as well as a league-leading plus-29 rating.
Pekka Rinne, 36
Rinne sometimes gets on a team with brick wall of a defence, but with a .915 save percentage, he’s the reason why Nashville’s blueliners often masquerade as a fourth forward.
Rinne sometimes gets on a team with brick wall of a defence, but with a .915 save percentage, he’s the reason why Nashville’s blueliners often masquerade as a fourth forward.
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