The Pittsburgh Penguins are gearing up for the 16th consecutive playoff appearance, starting next week. That is the longest current streak in major North American sports. The last time Pittsburgh did not make the post season was Crosby's rookie year way back in 2005-2006.
Crosby has led the Penguins to three Stanley Cup titles in 2009 and then back-to-back in 2016 and 2017. Well, you can add yet another accolade to his resume. The Penguins future Hall of Famer was voted as the NHL's Most Complete Player by the NHL Player's Association. Over 500 players voted, with Crosby garnering 29.5 percent of the vote.
The anonymous survey given to current NHL players has a series of questions, ranging from “if you needed to win one game, what player would you want on your team,” “who is the game's best trash talker,” among many others. It is the third year in a row that NHL players voted the Penguins superstar as the most complete player.
In 2020-2021, he actually finished tied with Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron with 112 votes exactly. This year, there was no tie. Crosby since entering the league has obviously been one of the best goal scorers. But he is also a great leader, an exceptional passer and plays very good defensively for someone that skilled offensively.
Florida Panthers forward Aleksander Barkov finished second with Bergeron claiming third in the poll.
This season, Crosby has 31 goals and 53 assists in 68 games for Pittsburgh. At this point in his career, you can honestly say that he belongs in the conversation with Mario Lemieux on the Penguins Mount Rushmore.
Pittsburgh will open up the playoffs next week against either the Panthers or the New York Rangers.