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Crosby, like Lemieux in 1987, gets his chance to be Canada’s hero
by Tony on 02/07/10 at 09:32 AM ET
Comments (14)
From the Pittsburgh Post Gazette’s Dejan Kovacevic (great to see Dejan writing hockey articles again):
By the time the torch is lit Friday to open the XXI Winter Olympics in Vancouver, the American narrative will have been foretold by a national media always seeking the next cereal-box icon: There will be superb skiier Lindsey Vonn, flamehaired snowboarder Shaun White and speedskating ace Apolo Anton Ohno.
Not in the eyes of the host nation, though. In Canada, these will be the Sidney Games. Sidney Crosby, perhaps the most precocious athlete in Pittsburgh’s history, captain of the Stanley Cup champion Penguins and the undisputed face of the National Hockey League, is about to go home and represent his country for the first time in major international competition. And that home will be delighted to have him back.
Filed in: Pittsburgh Penguins | The Confluence | Permalink
Tags: NHL-Hockey, Pittsburgh+Penguins,
Comments
Embarrass is too strong a word Winger….
You can hate him all you want, we get it, but to say that they’d be embarrassed if Crosby leads the Canadians to the gold is just inaccurate….
Posted by Tony from Virginia Beach, VA on 02/07/10 at 11:12 AM ET
Embarrass is too strong a word Winger….
You can hate him all you want, we get it, but to say that they’d be embarrassed if Crosby leads the Canadians to the gold is just inaccurate….
Too strong of a word for you, okay, I get it.
Doesn’t mean it’s wrong.
And it’s not inaccurate, either.
You’re a blogger, Tony. Where’s that thick skin??
Posted by Red Winger from Sault Ste Marie on 02/07/10 at 11:16 AM ET
Me? My skin’s fine. And I have absolutely no problem reading constructive criticism on any of my team’s players and/or coaches. Moreover, I welcome it, that’s why I started a blog in the first place. I rarely write articles where I’m strictly praising how the Pens are doing, most of the time I’m bitching about something.....
So I have no problem with you saying they’d be “embarrased”, I just don’t agree. I’ve always believed those that constantly denigrate Crosby’s leadership abilities are way off, but of course everyone’s entitled to their opinion….
Doesn’t mean I have to agree with them though…. 
Posted by Tony from Virginia Beach, VA on 02/07/10 at 11:24 AM ET
The fact that the likelihood of Crosby ending up as a Canadian Olympic hero can incite this much fear among his dimly witted detractors should be quite the motivation.
Decent article. Incidentally, the deciding game in 1987 was the reason I became a Penguins fan through Lemieux proxy so to speak. A rather grainy signal broadcasted on Swedish television if I remember correctly. All to long ago.
Posted by Moq from Denmark on 02/07/10 at 11:28 AM ET
Crosby is already an accomplished leader. Anyone who says otherwise is simply jealous. I could care less about some SI poll, Crosby hasn’t whined in 3 years. And if he has, it’s been hard to make out because of the incessant whining of fans of the rival teams (especially the Flyers, Capitals and Red Wings) his team has vanquished in the playoffs.
He’s the face of hockey in the NHL already, and he’s about to become the face of hockey for Team Canada.
Like it or not, it’s happening.
Posted by HNBCTB on 02/07/10 at 11:38 AM ET
It’s funny, because every article that gets posted about the Pens, there’s Red Winger, whining and moaning about something. Oh, Pittsburgh not a hockey market. Oh, Crosby isn’t a real captain. Oh, the Pens won’t go back to the Finals. Blah blah blah, then act like your opinion represents the majority of people. I could care less if anyone says Crosby is a whiner and not a good captain. Sid has won everything he has needed. He’s constantly improving his game and making it evolve to fit whatever the team needs. I’ve never heard him complain about the coach. From all accounts of players and management, he’s the hardest worker on the team. Apparently, though, that’s not enough. Sid will keep on winning and in the end, that’s all that is going to matter.
Posted by pens fan in baltimore on 02/07/10 at 12:22 PM ET
How about dressing room leadership? Or leadership in the intangibles? Harder to determine, perhaps; but a better overall gauge of a true hero, in my opinion.
Dont forget who chose him as the alternate captain for these Olympics.
Posted by Greg on 02/07/10 at 12:49 PM ET
most of the time I’m bitching about something…..
Freakin’ Yinzer.
What really gets me, though, is that every time there’s a post about Crosby the WIngs fans (particularly Red Winger) come out of the woodwork to leave negative comments about how he’s a whiner (his peers say so!), not a leader (he didn’t get many votes on a poll!), a diver (he fell down a lot in 2005!) or just about how us Pens fans are band-wagoners (they almost moved to Kansas City!).
But, God forbid Don Cherry says something about Nik Lidstrom.
In conclusion:
Bashing Crosby = Okay.
Bashing Red Wings = Blasphemy.
Really, though, I can think of worse things than rooting for a kid that’s devoted his life to the sport of hockey. I’m not sure how you can’t respect a guy that works so hard at improving his game when he’s good enough to make his money without doing so.
Posted by Flashtastick56 from Milford, CT on 02/07/10 at 01:31 PM ET
IF Crosby does well, expect my fellow wings fans to credit Babcock’s coaching and Yzerman’s skill in assembling the team.
Sweden for the repeat!
Posted by redxblack from Akron Ohio on 02/07/10 at 02:13 PM ET
most of the time I’m bitching about something…..
Freakin’ Yinzer.
Technically, I don’t think I can be classified as a yinzer, since I’ve never lived in the Pittsburgh area proper….
I’ll have to check with the judges on that….
Posted by Tony from Virginia Beach, VA on 02/07/10 at 02:56 PM ET
Technically, I don’t think I can be classified as a yinzer, since I’ve never lived in the Pittsburgh area proper….
I’ll have to check with the judges on that….
Ha.
Posted by Flashtastick56 from Milford, CT on 02/07/10 at 05:26 PM ET
Oh, Pittsburgh not a hockey market. Oh, Crosby isn’t a real captain.
And I’ve yet to see one of you debate that point with me. You attack, you go for the personal insults…but you never attempt to defend those two points mentioned above.
And why not?
Because intellectually you know you cannot deny what I said. Emotionally, yes; that is why you get personal. But intellectually, no dice.
Posted by Red Winger from Sault Ste Marie on 02/08/10 at 11:29 AM ET
And I’ve yet to see one of you debate that point with me.
Point of fact: Big enough leader to be named an Alternate Captain at age 22 by none other than your beloved leader (who won zilch before Lidstrom & Frderov) Yzerman and S.C. winning coach Babcock.
Posted by Lindas1st from New England on 02/16/10 at 11:51 AM ET
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For your sake, Canada, I hope this doesn’t transpire.
Oh, not that I don’t think you’re a slight favorite over the Russians to win Gold. And not that I don’t think it would be cool for some Team Canada player to emerge a new national hero.
But not Crosby.
You’re better than that.
Don’t embarrass your past heroes by grasping on to a kid who has shown he is not leadership material; a kid that is called the biggest whiner in the NHL by his colleagues.
Should a national hero be defined by scoring the biggest goal of the tournament? Maybe, but that seems awfully shallow.
How about dressing room leadership? Or leadership in the intangibles? Harder to determine, perhaps; but a better overall gauge of a true hero, in my opinion.
You’re better than this, Canada.
Posted by Red Winger from Sault Ste Marie on 02/07/10 at 11:05 AM ET