Sidney Crosby, the captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins, has been awarded the NHL’s Conn Smythe Trophy for his outstanding play in the 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs. He was also named to
the NHL’s First All-Star Team
and was a finalist for both the Hart Memorial Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award.
This is Sidney Crosby’s fourth Stanley Cup Championship, and he has now won two Conn Smythes and one Art Ross trophy. He is one of only eight players in NHL history to have won both the Hart and Calder Memorial Trophies as league MVP. During the regular season, Crosby registered 73 points and was awarded both the Lady Byng Trophy for sportsmanship and the Ted Lindsay Award for helping his teammates win.
He also tallied 22 assists during seven post-season games against Tampa Bay in April, including four game-winners. He tied a franchise record by scoring five game-winning goals in one playoff series, which also tied Wayne Gretzky (1988) for the most by a player since the 1979 quadruple overtime Stanley Cup Final between Edmonton and New York. Crosby then recorded his fourth career playoff hat trick in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final, two nights after being named as an All-Star.
In addition to his regular season success, Crosby also helped the Penguins win their sixth straight Southeast Division title. He had eight points (two goals and six assists) in 11 games against Tampa Bay during the playoffs and was named as a member of the All-Finalist team at the 2018 NHL Awards Show. Crosby is just the second player from Pittsburgh to win multiple Stanley Cup titles, joining Mario Lemieux, who won three. He is one of four players to have multiple Art Ross trophies (2011–12, 2012–13). He is also the only player to have won both the Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award in his career.
Crosby’s first NHL game was on October 5, 2005, against the New Jersey Devils. He scored his first NHL goal on January 18, 2006, against Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils. He registered his first NHL hat trick on February 9, 2006, against goaltender Wade Dubielewicz of the New York Islanders during a 6–5 home win. Crosby finished his rookie season with 102 points (39 goals and 63 assists) in 81 games to finish third in scoring and led all rookies in goals (tie), assists (tie) and points.
On July 14, 2006, at the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, the Pittsburgh Penguins made Crosby their number one draft pick.
Crosby was selected to play in the 2007 YoungStars game. He also played for Team Canada in World Championships in the summer of 2007. In his first two games against Russia and Slovakia, he recorded a goal and an assist each game and became the youngest player to record a hat trick at 18 years of age (competing against players who were 19 and older). In his second game with Canada, Crosby was named to Canada’s team for the 2008 Winter Olympics in Beijing, China.
During the final game of 2007, Crosby scored his first NHL hat trick, scoring thrice in a 6–2 victory over the New York Islanders. He finished the year with 55 points in 70 games.
In 2008–09, Crosby finished the regular season with 79 points (35 goals and 46 assists) in 80 games for an average of 1.42 points per game. He led Penguins forwards in goals and was second to Sidney Crosby in total team scoring. Pittsburgh won their first Southeast Division title since 1996–97 and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals against Carolina.
