Sidney Crosby, the Pittsburgh Penguins captain, plays his 1,000th NHL game on February 20 against the New York Islanders. He’s the 349th player in NHL history to play 1,000 games.
Friendly reminder: Sidney Crosby will be honored on the ice during a pre-game ceremony prior to tonight's game. The ceremony is set to begin at 7:04 PM. pic.twitter.com/5orQRjObEd
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) February 20, 2021
Sidney Crosby Reaches Mark of 1,000 NHL Games
There are a few moments in a player’s career that he won’t forget. The first game, first goal — and for goalies, first win — reaching the big hundreds mark for goals… But not many of them manage to reach 1,000 NHL games. Sidney Crosby did.
The 2006 NHL Draft first overall pick for the Pittsburgh Penguins is the first player in the franchise to ever reach the mark. However, reaching 1,000 was not an easy task for Crosby. The player had to face a few bumps during his path including a concussion that kept him away from the ice for more than 13 months, a broken jaw, and a pandemic.
Of course, this landmark may be small compared to everything else he has accomplished. The centre is a three-time Stanley Cup Champion, including the first back-to-back since the ’90s. Crosby is also a two-time winner of the Hart, Conn Smythe, Maurice Richard, and Art Ross Trophies, a three-time winner of the Ted Lindsay Award, and a two-time Olympic gold medalist. The list goes on and on, and it is not a big surprise to anyone he managed to reach 1,000 NHL games.
During his 16-year NHL career, Crosby has been a phenomenal player and his numbers show. He has a record of 468 goals, 808 assists resulting in 1,276 points in 999 games so far. That’s 1.28 points per game ever since he started back in 2005.
Crosby is only 16 points behind Alex Ovechkin, from the Washington Capitals. But he also has 164 fewer games than the Capitals’ captain.
When It Started
The hype surrounding the young Sidney Crosby was nothing but fair. He was playing for the Rimouski Oceanic to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey the year he was drafted. He led the QMJHL in scoring each time and helped Rimouski reach the Memorial Cup Final in 2005. Rimouski and the QMJHL retired his jersey on September 27, 2019.
Crosby made his NHL debut on October 5, 2005, against the New Jersey Devils. His first goal, however, came three games later. Crosby scored with 1:28 left in the second period on October 8 during a game against the Boston Bruins. He also had two assists that day but the Penguins fell short in a 7-6 overtime loss.
Ever since then, Crosby has been a delight to watch. After 16 years, many would expect him to not be that good anymore but he doesn’t let down. Last season, the Pittsburgh Penguins scored 16 goals, 31 assists for 47 points in 41 games. This season, Crosby has 6 goals and 7 assists for 13 points in 15 games.
What Comes Next
The 33-year-old says he wants to spend the rest of his career with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Even with all the trade rumours that have been flying around the league, the captain remains committed to his team.
During an interview on February 19, Crosby said “Nothing has changed” when it comes to his intentions to stay in Pittsburgh.
“[The rumours are] definitely kind of a new subject that I’ve had to deal with and hear about a little bit,” Crosby said, “But I love playing here. This is where I’d love to play for the rest of my career. So I can’t really control what’s said or rumours or things like that, but that’s just kind of how I approach it.”
Crosby loves Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh loves Crosby.
…And this interview will probably make you smile 😁 pic.twitter.com/Vvh2y9Enee— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) February 20, 2021
Crosby is also not thinking about retirement anytime soon.
“I think as long as I feel good, I’d love to play as long as I can,” he said. “I don’t really have an idea of what that age is or number is. I think I just focus on playing out my contract and seeing where I’m at then. I feel really good. … I feel good, and I want to play as long as I can. So I guess we’ll have to see.”
Sidney Crosby still brings an entertaining game to watch when he’s on the ice and having him playing for at least three more years is a good thing for all the Pittsburgh Penguins community and for all hockey fans around the world.
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
