AT THE STANLEY CUP
Crosby’s impact runs deep
PITTSBURGH—His name and face have been splashed across front pages and television screens for a good six years now, so it’s easy to forget that Sidney Crosby is only 21 years old. Just think, had he slurped champagne that comes with winning the Stanley Cup last year, he could have been locked up for underage drinking.
You forget that Crosby is two years younger than Wayne Gretzky was when the Great One won his first Cup. Or that Gretzky had played five NHL seasons before winning it all or that he scored two fewer goals and had only four more points during his march to the title than Crosby has in the playoffs this season.
Crosby has 15 goals and 31 points in the playoffs, but the Penguins captain has just one goal, two assists and a minus- 3 rating in six games against the Red Wings. He has been shut out in four of the six games. If the Pens win Game Seven on Friday night, Evgeni Malkin will most likely be named most valuable player in the postseason.
But if the Red Wings win, Crosby will be taking much of the blame. It comes with being the NHL’s poster boy. He’s been compared to Gretzky, by Gretzky. People are starting to whisper that he disappeared in the finals, that he failed to deliver the way Gretzky did.
And it’s nonsense.
Sid the Kid has come through. He’s had an enormous impact on the series, including Tuesday night when his scoring line read 0-0-0, minus-1, in a 2-1 victory over the Red Wings. It was Exhibit A in Crosby winning the game inside the game, making a difference without showing up on the score sheet or the highlight reel. His effect should not be overlooked and cannot be overstated.
He was the guy Pens coach Dan Bylsma called upon to win a critical faceoff in the third period with Pittsburgh trying to kill the second of two penalties taken minutes apart while clinging to a one-goal lead. He spent the evening playing defense and getting his stick in passing lanes and backchecking and embracing the intangibles required to win.
“Those are plays that maybe we didn’t take a picture of, but they are duly noted,” Bylsma said Wednesday. “And that’s the game he’s brought over the last 35 games. He’s played the game the right way. He’s paid attention to details. He can win a faceoff at a key time. That’s a huge asset to have, and it’s a great way to lead.”
Throw out Game Five, when Crosby looked flustered and took a ridiculous slashing penalty for smacking nemesis Red Wings center Henrik Zetterberg across the back of his legs. If anything, he was guilty of engaging in a team-wide meltdown when the Pens were on the business end of a blowout.
Detroit has been obsessed with stopping Crosby, which has led to better opportunities for the rest of the kids. Thirdliners Jordan Staal and Tyler Kennedy scored for Pittsburgh in Game Six, as they did in Game Four, while Zetterberg stalked Crosby.
They can shut down Sid the Kid, but it comes at a price. Crosby has proved he’s no less valuable when wearing down the deeper Wings than if he’s scoring himself. He has made the Penguins better as a team. He has done more with less than anyone in the series while playing with invisible wingers Chris Kunitz and Bill Guerin.
“He’s just doing it on the ice,” defenseman Rob Scuderi said. “The best thing that he’s done is just played his game. Even last night he didn’t have a ton of points, but he played his game, he played our system. He didn’t get a whole lot offensively, but he didn’t give up anything defensively. To me, that is the mark of a good leader.”
And now Crosby has one more game to join Gretzky as a champion. If the Pens win, his stats will be forgotten. People will remember him raising the Cup.
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