No stone unturned
Crosby caps stunning two-year run with Cup
The Pittsburgh Penguins were basking in the glory of their first Stanley Cup since 2009 at about this point last year, but Kris Letang already sensed Sidney Crosby looking ahead to future feats. Crosby was eager to start training for the World Cup of Hockey, and also believed the Penguins had what it took to go back-to-back.
“The details, what he wants to accomplish, it’s pretty incredible,” Letang, Crosby’s longtime Penguins teammate, said with admiration earlier this month.
Crosby just wrapped up a stunning and perhaps unprecedented two-year run – maybe the most dominant stretch in a career that’s long been bound for the Hall of Fame.
Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said Crosby deserved mention among the all-time greats and was “arguably” the finest player in his generation, but that debate has long been over. No one really even comes close.
“You have a small window to play and to have a career and I feel fortunate, but I also understand how difficult it is, so you just want to try to make the best of it,” Crosby said.
Beyond talent, making the best of it seems to lie in a competitive drive that’s left teammates, coaches and opponents in awe.
After his season ended in April because of neck surgery, Letang said he believed in the Penguins ability to overcome his absence primarily because of Crosby and his determination. Sullivan picked up on that same spirit when he replaced Mike Johnston behind the Pittsburgh bench last season.
“I don’t know that I’ve been around an athlete, not just a hockey player but an athlete, that is as driven as Sid is,” said Sullivan, who played more than 700 NHL games before stepping into the coaching realm.
Crosby left no stone unturned when it came to eating right, training right and looking out for his teammates, Sullivan said.
He was among the few regulars to join an optional practice during the final, believing it was “beneficial” to get out on the ice and touch the puck. Never mind that his season started almost nine months earlier with a World Cup of Hockey pre-tournament game.
A Team Canada teammate and NHL rival, Jonathan Toews was amazed at Crosby’s level at that point last fall, how he seemed to pick right up from the Cup and Conn Smythe wins from three months earlier.
“He really is the best player in the world,” said Couture.
Penguins teammates said the same thing after Game 5 of the final against the Predators when Crosby – within the first 91 seconds – hit a post, drew a penalty and set up the first goal in a 6-0 win.
“He’s pretty inspirational when he plays that way and gets to a level that not many guys can get to,” veteran Matt Cullen said.
Sullivan sits young players next to Crosby in the team’s home dressing room for exactly that reason. Out-of-nowhere rookie star Jake Guentzel currently occupies the stall directly to Crosby’s left.
Crosby finished these playoffs with 27 points in 24 games and now is tied for 10th all-time with 1.11 points per-game in the post-season (minimum 50 games). Only 18 players have more than his 164 career playoff points and only 19 have mustered more than his 107 assists – all of them in earlier eras when scoring was higher.