Where does Sidney Crosby rank among the NHL's all-time greats?: Penguins mailbag

New York Times

2 days ago

Welcome to Part 2 of my monthly Pittsburgh Penguins mailbag, which is dedicated to Sidney Crosby's birthday week. Part 1 is here.
We've reached the true dog days of the summer, but the good news is that opening night is now less than two months away, if you can believe that.
Thanks for all the great questions.
Away we go.
If Sid continues his brilliance for a few more seasons into his 40s, where do you think that rates him among all-time greats? Not even the other greats played at this level late into their careers. — @DDD20022014
No question, Crosby is operating at a higher level at his age than most all-time greats do. This is partly a compliment to him and partly a sign of the times. Nutrition and training have changed the game. In recent years, legends such as LeBron James, Tom Brady, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic have dominated their sports while in the neighborhood of 40. That's not a coincidence.
Crosby, of course, has a drive that's unique.
All-time rankings are great for debates, but the problem with them is that there is no right or wrong answer. It's all what you think, what you make of it, how you interpret the numbers, what your eyes tell you. I'm a firm believer that Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky and Bobby Orr are the greatest hockey players who ever lived. I don't know what Crosby would have to do to crack the top three, but it would be tough. He won't catch Gretzky's numbers, and he won't dazzle with pure talent the way Lemieux and Orr did.
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That said, I've got Sid at No. 4, ahead of Gordie Howe, Jaromir Jagr and Alex Ovechkin.
I'm a big believer that, a decade or two from now, we will say that the five greatest players of all time are Lemieux, Gretzky, Orr, Crosby and Connor McDavid. The order you put them in is up to you, but I think there will be a clear distinction after those five, with all due respect to the other all-time greats we've discussed.
What is your personal favorite goal that Crosby has scored in a Penguins uniform? — @Haugh412
For pure drama, I'll never forget the classic 'f— yeah' goal against the Islanders in 2011, when he returned from his year-long concussion absence.
On a personal level, he scored a great goal against the Islanders in Game 5 of their 2013 first-round series.
That was the first time my oldest son, Colton, was ever in attendance for a Penguins game. He was all of 10 months old, but he can always say he was in the building for that goal.
If the Lemieux group buys the Penguins, does that all but guarantee Crosby is not only a Penguin for life, but that ownership is in his future? — @MikeFitzPGH
I could give you a lengthy answer here, and I could give all the warnings about how far away we are from this becoming a reality.
But if this were to happen, sure, I could imagine Crosby being an investor at some point. He's got the financial qualifications. It wouldn't be bad PR. He'd be a firm but fair owner. It all makes sense.
In your opinion, is there a player in the NHL right now that could rival 87's career by the end of that player's career? — @michaelthughes
Well, sure. McDavid is the only answer. He's been the best player in the world for about seven years now, and his scoring totals exceed Crosby's, at least on a year-by-year average, through 10 years of his career. Crosby is the more decorated winner and the more complete player. But McDavid may well win a championship, and you could argue he's a more dominant offensive player than Crosby.
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In the end, Crosby and McDavid are both top five all-time. But if McDavid finally gets a Cup win, many will rank him ahead of Crosby historically when it's all said and done. You can't diminish what McDavid has done so far. He's an all-time great. So is Crosby, of course.
Do you think Sid shares some of the same mystic/enigmatic qualities of Mario? Always felt like this was a parallel between them. — @The_GreekHammer
I don't think anyone could ever consider Sid enigmatic in any manner, so I guess the answer is no. But I thoroughly enjoyed the question.
Might need some more time to digest this one. Ha ha.
Which Penguins team, on paper, did you think Crosby was going to lead to another Stanley Cup win? And would he have if Jarome Iginla played the right side? — @Rutsburgh
Indeed, the 2013 Penguins were the best, on paper, of the Crosby era. What happened against the Bruins in the Eastern Conference final remains confounding.
But I wouldn't blame Dan Bylsma too much for putting Jarome Iginla on the left wing. Was it unwise? Sure. Is that why the Penguins lost that series? Of course not. This drives me nuts. I don't know why this has become the narrative.
The Penguins scored two goals in four games in that series. Iginla playing out of position didn't have that much of an impact. (And for the 100th time, Crosby didn't want to play with Iginla. He was at his best that season while playing with Chris Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis. James Neal was a sensational right winger for Evgeni Malkin. So, you either put Iginla at left wing or played him on the third line, neither of which made much sense.)
My 2-year-old kid has a soundbox to fall asleep to that I can program things on. Loves Sid and the Pens. What's the best game or broadcast that I can download and put on the soundbox for him to fall asleep to? Best Sid game or best Mike Lange called game? — @tankk25
If simply sleeping is the desire, you could pick between dozens of 2-1 losses in New Jersey. I believe I've covered them all. Just dreadfully boring.
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But if Mike Lange is the desire, and it's a good one, there are lots of YouTube videos of his greatest calls. You can't go wrong with any of them.
What's more important to Sid: retiring a Penguin or playing in the Stanley Cup Final one more time? If the latter, at what point would he agree to be moved? This year, next? When he knows it's his last season? — @genebromberg
I know this isn't the answer you're looking for, but I think he'd like to return to the Stanley Cup Final as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins. And I think that's all he really thinks about.
What do you think Sid thinks of the rebuild so far? — @GoPenquins
I think he's frustrated and wants the Penguins to be good right now instead of a few years from now. That's my sense.
This doesn't mean he's against Kyle Dubas or anything like that. I just think he hates to lose and this isn't a fun time for him.
How involved in the operations is Crosby really? — @AmyKirschner75
Not at all. He really isn't. He has the power to flex his muscles if he wants when it comes to front-office decisions, but he doesn't. Mario and Jagr did. He's just not wired that way.
Will the national media ever stop trying to put Crosby in another sweater? — @jmadden34
Probably not. People sure are tired of seeing him play in Pittsburgh.
I'm exhausted by the topic.
When are you going to stand up for Sid and start telling the major networks that Sid isn't leaving? — @gregcook09
Thank you for presuming I have the power to get ESPN and Sportsnet to stop talking about it.
I'll make sure to have a word with them later today.
How happy will Sid be when McDavid and Gavin McKenna join him in Pittsburgh after next season? — @Yinzerporn
I'm sure he'd be delighted. I wouldn't mind it either. It's good for my line of work when the Penguins are interesting, and I think that's the kind of trio that would get people talking just a bit.
Thanks for all the questions, everyone, and thanks for reading, as always.
I still suspect this offseason will have another interesting transaction or two before training camp arrives in mid-September. I'll have you covered.
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