Another Crosby thread

[T.Low 1,011]

While watching HNIC with the Pens and the Leafs, i had a little revelation.

I actually kinda feal bad for the guy. If all that hype was about T.Low, hell, I'd be sick of me! The guy doesn't ask for all that hype.

Don't get me wrong; I hope they don't make the playoffs this year. but not because of Sidney Crosby. But because of the way the NHL hypes Sidney Crosby.

He probably just wishes he could play hockey without the frikin camera lingering on him for half of "O Canada" every game. The commercials are getting ridiculous, especially in Canada. But they're not his idea.

Imagine for a moment Crosby in a Wings jeresy, say on a line with Datsyuk and Holmstrom. Or on the 2nd line setting up Z and Franzen. He doesn't even get an "A" because Datsyuk and Zetterberg have already earned them. He just plays hockey as one of the Wings, not as Mr. Hockey Next One, or young Captain of the Penguins. He wouldn't cry to the refs, or get interviewed 24/7. We'd luv him.

He's tenacious as hell on the ice, there's no question about that.

OK, I don't feal that bad for him. But its not his fault that he's getting hyped more than Barack Obama. Seriously.

[arnoldbuck 0]

interesting. I like it. I've very much flip flopped on Sid. I didnt like him much in junior, or in his first blast at the nhl. But again, really not because of him, but because of the publicity. He is far from my favorite, but I have decided my true hate for Cros is the concent public, verbal handjobing he gets. Thats all. Truth be told, I wish he had a wicked scorer on his team, because I would like to see him win a few more scoring titles.

Anyway, nuff on that. But nice to see a change of thought on syd.

[lets go pavel 2]

While watching HNIC with the Pens and the Leafs, i had a little revelation.

I actually kinda feal bad for the guy. If all that hype was about T.Low, hell, I'd be sick of me! The guy doesn't ask for all that hype.

Don't get me wrong; I hope they don't make the playoffs this year. but not because of Sidney Crosby. But because of the way the NHL hypes Sidney Crosby.

He probably just wishes he could play hockey without the frikin camera lingering on him for half of "O Canada" every game. The commercials are getting ridiculous, especially in Canada. But they're not his idea.

Imagine for a moment Crosby in a Wings jeresy, say on a line with Datsyuk and Holmstrom. Or on the 2nd line setting up Z and Franzen. He doesn't even get an "A" because Datsyuk and Zetterberg have already earned them. He just plays hockey as one of the Wings, not as Mr. Hockey Next One, or young Captain of the Penguins. He wouldn't cry to the refs, or get interviewed 24/7. We'd luv him.

He's tenacious as hell on the ice, there's no question about that.

OK, I don't feal that bad for him. But its not his fault that he's getting hyped more than Barack Obama. Seriously.

I agree. Apart from the whining, which I do think he does too much of for my liking, I really have no problem with him on the ice. It's just so hard to watch him objectively and not have it tainted by all the hype and publicity. It would be nice to see him grow his own voice off the ice, though. So often it seems he either regurgitates the company line, or he has nothing at all to say.

Edited February 15, 2009 by lets go pavel

[Heroes of Hockeytown 694]

I'm fine with him. I watch hockey for the game, I don't even pay attention to commercials, Crosby oriented or otherwise; and I sure as hell don't listen to the clowns on Versus/NBC when they call games, but that's because they've got no desire the actually call the game as opposed to aimless babbling about any old thing.

Call me crazy, but I tend to judge players based on their play on the ice.

Edited February 15, 2009 by Heroes of Hockeytown

[55fan 5,133]

I actually like him. We who are fans of the game are sick to death of the promotion, but kids I know who didn't know or like hockey know Crosby. The are becoming interested in the game because there is someone they see that they recognize. In my generation it was Orr, then Gretzky. Every generation needs someone to get the spotlight on hockey.

The kids may just know who Sid the Kid is because it's cool to know about him because he's a superstar, but the more they want to know about him, the more they watch hockey, which means more fans and all that entails.

I'd rather have a role model for kids who isn't famous because of drugs, domestic abuse, animal cruelty or shooting himself or someone else. I really think kids need someone positive to look up to today.

He certainly gets the perks of being the Face of the NHL, but there has to be a personal price. I can't even imagine being his girlfriend.

He whines to the refs, but he's the captain. When he grows up a bit, he'll outgrow the whining and start just talking to them.

Pretty much anything that I have disliked about him is due in some part to his overexposure or due to his youth. I remember when they were interviewing him after he lost the Cup. That had to be the hardest interview of his life, yet he praised his goalie, crediting him for getting them as far as they did. Remember how that last goal went in? Off Fleury's butt? That cost them the game. A more experienced captain might have talked more about the Wings and given the usual "they played a great game" speech, which he did, but he was more concerned about his teammate, who had to be kicking himself despite having kept them alive into 3 overtimes the game before.

I think he will grow into the role. The lockout almost killed hockey as far as new fans go. The NHL needs someone they can promote to get young people interested so the sport can grow again. The Crosby promotion and hype started before Ovi and Dats and Hank had really emerged into the limelight beyond their home cities. He was already famous in Canada before hit the NHL.

It was a natural marketing move. They needed someone who could be in the spotlight, and along came a young, talented, well-spoken (both party line and articulate) guy who kids can look up to. As much as we hate to admit it, the game needs someone who can appeal to sports fans who aren't into hockey, and Crosby fits the bill.

Get them hooked on the game, and they'll appreciate the Hanks and Hossas and Pavels and Nicks as they learn about what it takes to be a good player. One kid I know was all about Crosby, but after the playoffs, he was all about Franzen. Now he's into the Bruins (credit Lucic). At least he's watching hockey, and that's what we need: new fans who are learning to love the game itself.

[spyder 0]

I file Crosby under the no-talent-assclown section. The wings totally destroyed him and the penguins in the playoffs. And the way the NHL hypes him up every chance they get while ignoring all the other good players is totally disgusting.

Edited February 15, 2009 by spyder

[Heroes of Hockeytown 694]

I file Crosby under the no-talent-assclown section.

A fair and objective way to describe the 2nd leading scorer in the league and former Art Ross and Hart winner.

The wings totally destroyed him and the penguins in the playoffs

The Wings did as good a job as anyone could ask, but he still was 2-4-6 in those six games.

[egroen 384]

He probably makes more money than any single hockey player in the history of the NHL, because of the hype, attention and endorsements, most of which he signs off on. I don't like him and I think it's pretty freakin' weird he still lives with Mario Lemeiux.

The NHL and VS marketing of him has actually turned me off.

Edited February 15, 2009 by egroen

[Lovin Jiri Fischer 147]

I understand that he doesn't ask for the hype. However, I see it going more and more to his head every season. I also don't like him because he's a terrible captain in my opinion.

Does anyone remember last year in the finals when the Pens had a 5 on 3 and Zetterberg completely shut Sid down with his skate? When asked about it in an interview, Crosby said something like "I don' t think what Zetterberg did was anything special." First of all, yes it was. Second, a good captain needs to respect his competition.

Or during the All Star Game incident, when Crosby got special treatment for showing up. Instead of throwing our players under the bus like he did in an interview, he could have recognized that he doesn't know their situations and whether or not they could travel. Especially when our players have families and Sid lives in Lemiux's basement.

He's also starting to turn into a little cheap shot artist. Not like Claude Lemiux though. More of a bitchy one like TooToo.

I used to really like Sid, but he's just been doing a lot of things lately that really piss me off.

[Ms_Hockey 0]

My only problem with Crosby is that he's a whiner - and a bad one at that.

He has considerable talent.. I don't think anybody can deny that. The publicity surrounding him I blame directly on Gary Bettman. I think for a 20 year old kid, he's under a lot of pressure to not only play well on the ice, but show up to be something great off-ice. I certainly wouldn't want to be in his shoes. And that just makes me think this whole idea is going to backfire eventually.

[uk_redwing 495]

Once a ***** always a *****.

[Spinner 6]

While watching HNIC with the Pens and the Leafs, i had a little revelation.

I actually kinda feal bad for the guy. If all that hype was about T.Low, hell, I'd be sick of me! The guy doesn't ask for all that hype.

Don't get me wrong; I hope they don't make the playoffs this year. but not because of Sidney Crosby. But because of the way the NHL hypes Sidney Crosby.

He probably just wishes he could play hockey without the frikin camera lingering on him for half of "O Canada" every game. The commercials are getting ridiculous, especially in Canada. But they're not his idea.

Imagine for a moment Crosby in a Wings jeresy, say on a line with Datsyuk and Holmstrom. Or on the 2nd line setting up Z and Franzen. He doesn't even get an "A" because Datsyuk and Zetterberg have already earned them. He just plays hockey as one of the Wings, not as Mr. Hockey Next One, or young Captain of the Penguins. He wouldn't cry to the refs, or get interviewed 24/7. We'd luv him.

He's tenacious as hell on the ice, there's no question about that.

OK, I don't feal that bad for him. But its not his fault that he's getting hyped more than Barack Obama. Seriously.

Great post. I don't hate the kid, I just hate the media frenzy. Especially when there are other players that deserve to share the spotlight. Yes I used to be on the bash Sid bandwagon but as it continues to go overboard, I have lightened up my disdain for him. I still don't like the whining but the media has created that in him. He was put in a position probably a year or 2 before he was mature enough in the NHL to handle it. He is a really good offensive player and deserves some of the limelight but not all of it.

[Guest EZBAKETHAGANGSTA]

My only problem with Crosby is that he's a whiner - and a bad one at that.

He has considerable talent.. I don't think anybody can deny that. The publicity surrounding him I blame directly on Gary Bettman. I think for a 20 year old kid, he's under a lot f pressure to not only play well on the ice, but show up to be something great off-ice. I certainly wouldn't want to be in his shoes. And that just makes me think this whole idea is going to backfire eventually.

Know who also was a bad whiner when he first came into the league? I'll give you a hint he played for the RW's and his name rhymes with Kaiserman. In ten years we very well may be celebratng Crosby as another NHL great, who has captianed his team from the get go, ala Steve and Sackic.

[cusimano_brothers 1,655]

But because of the way the NHL hypes Sidney Crosby.

The commercials are getting ridiculous, especially in Canada. But they're not his idea.

What caliber of handgun is it that points at his head when he signs all these endorsement deals? He is richly compensated for loaning out his face. Memo to Mr. Crosby: Here's an idea; just say no!

[BlakChamber 8]

I file Crosby under the no-talent-assclown section. The wings totally destroyed him and the penguins in the playoffs. And the way the NHL hypes him up every chance they get while ignoring all the other good players is totally disgusting.

:looney:

[VM1138 1,921]

Meh, it's not just the publicity, he's a whiner and he hasn't yet grown into his big-boy leadership britches. Oh, and he's overrated.

[thedisappearer 291]

Know who also was a bad whiner when he first came into the league? I'll give you a hint he played for the RW's and his name rhymes with Kaiserman. In ten years we very well may be celebratng Crosby as another NHL great, who has captianed his team from the get go, ala Steve and Sackic.

Was this Kaiserman character the face of the league?

The issue isn't as much his whining, it's the fact the league makes him the Poster Boy of Perfect Hockey and he whines.

[lightthelamp13 0]

:looney:

I don't know if I'd call him over-rated. He won the Art Ross and the Hart in a year in which who was in wingers? Colby Armstrong? I'm not arguing against anything being said about him, but calling him over-rated is a little extreme. I think we'll all see how good he can actually be in the Olympics when he has Vincent Lecavalier and Jarome Iginla on his wings.

[thedisappearer 291]

I don't like him and I think it's pretty freakin' weird he still lives with Mario Lemeiux.

Totally. WTF is going on with him STILL live with Lemeiux?!?!?!?

[SouthernWingsFan 854]

Bill Crosby? I love Bill Crosby!

And I really do not care to hear of Sydney Crosby's name again. Not because of national media, that doesn't bother me even though he is talked about a lot, but because of the weird obsession in here that people have of him.

And the whining card is still silly to me, since pretty much any player and their grandmother whine and complain at some point in time, probably much more than once as well.

This board loses its mind half the time when a thread about Sydney Crosby comes up.

Edited February 15, 2009 by SouthernWingsFan

[akustyk 84]

good take.

I'm personally fed up with NHL broadcast shoving him into my throat each single

time it's possible or impossible. that's just beyond ridiculity, even more if you consider

how little media attention guys like Malkin, Ovechkin or Datsyuk draw, while their skills

are not really that far from Sindy or even better.

truth being said, Crosby is a solid player who has been unlucky to have the burden

of media attention. and this whiny Therrien b* as his coach. if Penguins had Iron Mike

or Hitch on their bench we could all see Croby becoming a player of different dimension.

point taken, though, I should myself admit I'm not that much of Crosby hater as

am the Sindy hype hater. TSN and especially NBC are making me cry everytime they

broadcast Pittsburgh game, but even avoiding this games will not zero the risk of

hearing orgasms about Crosby.

in the end, though, as much as we may feel sympathy towards this guy this will all

be gone once we start watching nationally televised NHL games. because there's

no way in hell we'll be spared Crosby references. and, holy Jesus, this always

makes me gonna puke :puke:

PS. also... I may indeed feel bad for Crosby to have this burden, but there's no way

in hell you'll sell me on his fighting abilities. nor about him as a perfect captain.

at least not now under this pansy Therrien

Edited February 15, 2009 by akustyk

[dicksmack 33]

Bill Crosby? I love Bill Crosby!

And I really do not care to hear of Sydney Crosby's name again. Not because of national media, that doesn't bother me even though he is talked about a lot, but because of the weird obsession in here that people have of him.

And the whining card is still silly to me, since pretty much any player and their grandmother whine and complain at some point in time, probably much more than once as well.

This board loses its mind half the time when a thread about Sydney Crosby comes up.

Because Crosby Doesn't Stop...

[SouthernWingsFan 854]

Because Crosby Doesn't Stop...

And plenty of other people still do their fair share of whining...

[Wingsallwin 0]

I agree that the league overestimates him, not by himself. But he seems to complain a lot on the referee and people hate him because he is kind of a player who always whimpers.

But the bottom line is that the fan base of NHL is not big, even small. If we compare Canada and America, Canada's hockey popularity dominates the American's hockey popularity. That's why the league continues to bring up the commercial of Crosby, whom the league thinks the player can bring some positive effect on American hockey. Why do we have to raise the popularity in America? Reason is simple. Except for the Leafs, American Hockey market is far bigger than Canadian Hockey market and the league NHL itself is admistered followed by core of America, not Canada, if we consider the revenue deeply.

NHL is still a money sports and Gary Bettman knows it. Regardless of what fans are mentioning, Gary Bettman has to proceed any policy that can earn more money for the NHL and Bettman may think Crosby is the answer. When he was young, Gretzky said Crosby will break his record up. Even though that looks almost impossible, that can motivate more Americans to watch hockey and by Bettman's thinking, it will cause the rising of hockey popularity in Amercia on TV.

But by those reasons, I still do not like the Kid and the way NHL overstates him and relies on him too much. I do not care because he is in the Eastern Conference team but maybe the sadness of the NHL; has to rely on one superstar for its popularity.

[softshoes 83]

First off, I'll agree with anyone who thinks he didn't ask to be the face of hockey.

Second, I'll disagree with anyone who thinks he has no talent.

He does whine, but since he's the face we always see it. Some of the scraps he's been seem to be the slappy/pushy type. I expect he'll one day drop the gloves proper. He's a kid, he's already been around long enough to forget that he just became old enough to drink a beer in the states, he is 21 right? At 21 my kid didn't have a clue .... about anything.

What sunrises me the most is how well he plays with the burden of living in a glass bowl, I would think many would crumble under the pressure. As for living in Mario's basement maybe his mom won't let him bring girls home, ever think of that?