Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is one of hockey's most dynamic and beloved players. He helped the Penguins win the Stanley Cup in June 2017 and became only the third NHL player to win the Stanley Cup MVP award in back-to-back seasons.
Arguably among the top 5 of pro hockey players, Crosby has earned a slew of awards in his first 12 years of play, including the three Stanley Cups, two Olympic gold medals and golds in the World Junior Championships, the World Championships and the World Cup of Hockey. As a rookie, he became the youngest player in NHL history to record 100 points, with 102 at season's end.
What makes this Penguins' hockey great tick? Sidney Crosby's bio at age 30 is brief but already noteworthy.
Birthday: Aug 7, 1987 in Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia
Young life: Son of a goaltender drafted by the Montreal Canadiens, Crosby started skating when he was just three. He attended high school in Faribault, Minnesota and scored 72 goals and had 90 assists in 57 games his sophomore year. In 2003 he was drafted by Rimouski Océanic, a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League team and was named Canada's top junior player his first two years. He also played for the Canadian National Junior Hockey team and was the youngest player to score a goal for the national team.
Drafted: 2005 as the first round, first pick by the Penguins in a draft dubbed the "Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes" due to his dominating the odds of becoming the first pick.
Standout rookie season moment: In an ESPN assessment of Crosby, Penguins radio analyst Colby Armstrong recalled watching him play in a Penguins and Flyers game Nov. 14, 2005, Crosby's rookie season. In a battle with former Flyers defenseman Derian Hatcher, Crosby took a stick to the mouth, resulting in parts of his two front teeth being sawed off.
"He throws his helmet down, all upset," Armstrong remembered. "His mouth is bleeding, his teeth are chipped. He's going up against an old-school guy like Hatcher, one of the baddest dudes in the league, and the fans were all over him. Sid was the young kid on the block and he kind of had to answer the bell and earn everybody's respect."
Crosby got stitches in his lip and came back to score in overtime, beating Antero Niittymaki with 46.7 seconds remaining. His stats for the 3-2 win: two goals and an assist.
Youngest captain ever: Crosby became the youngest team captain in NHL history when he was named to helm the Penguins May 31, 2007. He was 19 years, 9 months and 24 days old.
A blowout 2017: His 12th season was a big one for Crosby: 44 regular season goals, making him the NHL leader and 27 points in 24 playoff games, including a postseason-best 19 assists. The playoffs were his playground, where he assisted in a Game 7 winner against the Capitals, created key goals in Game 4 against Ottawa and tallied three assists in the Penguins' Game 5 blowout over the Predators in the Final.
For more information: Sidney Crosby biography
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