At 29, Crosby is even more deadly
Pens superstar captain is shooting a bit more often than the younger model
PITTSBURGH — Sidney Crosby can’t seem to find the right word for what’s happening. If the Pittsburgh Penguins captain is being honest, he’s not really interested in finding one. He would rather just enjoy a hot streak that’s bordering on absurd, even by his remarkably high standards.
The two-time MVP’s 17 goals lead the NHL just over a quarter of the way into the season, even though he missed the first six games while recovering from a concussion.
Even though injuries have forced head coach Mike Sullivan to shake up his lines.
Even though Crosby insists he hasn’t made some sort of conscious decision to pepper the opposing net. “You can call it whatever you want,” Crosby said. Just don’t call it luck.
“You don’t get puck luck (that many) times,” teammate Patric Hornqvist said. “I just think he’s in the right spot at the right time.” Over and over and over again. The game’s most creative player is in the midst of a rebirth at 29, a renaissance that coincided with Sullivan’s arrival last December. The player who appeared on the other side of his prime a year ago has reclaimed his spot as the face of the sport and appears in no mood to give up the mantle anytime soon.
Crosby figures he’s just doing what he’s always done. “I’m in the same spots, the same areas,” said Crosby, who is putting the puck on net 3.5 times per game, a slight uptick from his usual average.
“When you think it’s going in, you tend to shoot a little bit more because you feel good. When you’re struggling a little bit, you feel you pass up a shot and make a pass. I think that’s normal for everybody.”
Maybe he’s finally getting a little selfish. It wasn’t always that way.
“Playing against him in the past, I would try to make sure I was taking away passing lanes from him,” said forward Eric Fehr, who spent nine years facing Crosby while skating for Washington before signing with Pittsburgh in 2015.
“You don’t expect him to pull up and shoot. You see him coming down in a three-on-two and you’re expecting him to lay it in somewhere. That makes him tough to defend.”