TRACES SPRING 2016 | Page 77

During an interview on January 8, 2016, Montreal Canadiens Captain, Max Pacioretty was asked about playing against Sidney Crosby and the current slump he was in. He began by saying, “He’s obviously the best player in the world.” A reporter then asked him if he thought Sidney Crosby was still the best player in the world and he replied, “Yes, absolutely,” and he goes on to explain that no other player in the world gets as much attention during a game than him because he is so skilled. He reiterates himself by saying, “It’s not even a question in my mind.” From my personal viewpoint, the opinions that matter the most is from the players themselves. They are the ones that play against every player in this debate and see first hand their skillsets. Another nod to Crosby came from his rival team The Philadelphia Flyers forward Jakub Voracek after Crosby was voted as the best player in the world for the sixth straight year on TSN’s top 50 players poll. The poll has only been running for six years. When asked if Crosby still deserves the top spot, Voracek stated, “I think he's on top, rightfully so, to be honest, he had 84 points last year and everybody's saying what a down season he had. I had 81 points and everybody said how great of a season I had. The guy has been on top since he got into the league. It's pretty impressive that he's been at the same level for so long, considering the injuries he's had in his career. Different people have different opinions, but I think if you were to ask players, they would say Crosby is on top." A poll done in 2014 by ESPN’s Craig Custance to find, according to current NHL players, who they would chose to build their franchise around. Fourteen players were asked and Crosby won by a very large margin. The appreciation towards Crosby’s talent from the players can also be shown through his three Ted Lindsay Awards. Hockey fans around the globe, however, do not show the same appreciation.

Crosby is consistently ranked among the most hated NHL players, but why? This hatred also caused him to be omitted from the All-star game this season. What has he ever done to be hated so much? Does it really mean anything to be out of the game? The answer to the first question is no, unless you consider cutting in the DMV line a reason to hate him. People always say he whines. He did as an eighteen year old, but who doesn’t then. The Hockey News published an article on February 5, 2015, of the 5 Most Hated NHL Stars, not surprisingly Crosby was listed as number one. The author, Andrew Bensch, reasons this by saying, “Let me be clear that yours truly is not amongst those who hate the best player in the game. However, like LeBron

James in the NBA, there is simply a lot of animosity towards the NHL’s best player. The majority of the Crosby hate comes from pure jealousy. It’s not as if Crosby aired “The Decision” of where he was going to sign like LeBron did, but regardless, fans don’t like Crosby because of how good he is at torching their favorite teams.” Crosby was omitted from the All-star game because it is fan voted, and the majority of fans hate him. Does it mean anything that he’s not playing in it? Not really, according to Pacioretty who says, “It doesn’t change my opinion on him, and probably 95% of the league’s opinion on him.”

If you search who is the best hockey player in the world on google and click on the first five articles that come up, they all have either a picture of Sidney Crosby on the top of the page or his name in the title. Explaining why Sidney Crosby is the best hockey player in the world becomes a lot easier once you look at his team and individual achievements and stats, and what both the players and media think of him. From the age of fifteen Crosby has been labeled as the next one. (The next Wayne Gretzky, considered the greatest hockey player of all time.) If he’s not the best player, why has Connor McDavid (The first overall pick in 2015 draft and labeled as the next next one.) been labeled as the next Sidney Crosby since the age of fifteen?

Rocket Richards, but has never won a Stanley Cup or Olympic Gold Medal. Of his biggest rivals in the league, Crosby is the only one that shows truly both individual and team success ofgreat magnitude.

Sidney 87 Crosby