Sidney Crosby is 38. Sure, you learn that proper. Crosby, identified for almost all of his iconic hockey profession as “Sid the Child,” is now one of many NHL’s elder statesmen as he gears up for his twenty first season. 

Crosby, who has spent his whole profession with the Pittsburgh Penguins, has loved a 20-year run that has greater than lived as much as the unbelievable hype that was positioned upon him previous to his first NHL shift. Whereas there are nonetheless extra chapters to write down, Crosby is already considered one of many best gamers to ever lace up the skates. 

Crosby’s lengthy record of accomplishments contains being an eight-time All-Star, a three-time Stanley Cup champion, a two-time winner of the Hart, Artwork Ross, Conn Smythe, and Maurice Richard trophies, a three-time Ted Lindsay Award winner, and a member of the NHL one centesimal Anniversary Workforce.

In recognition of his birthday, here is a rating of the highest 10 moments of Crosby’s unbelievable NHL profession to date. 

Honorable point out: Arising clutch within the 2008 Stanley Cup Remaining 

Whereas the Penguins in the end misplaced the collection to the Pink Wings, Crosby’s help late in Recreation 5 of the 2008 Stanley Cup Remaining nonetheless deserves a point out because it performed a key function in what remains to be the sixth-longest sport in Cup historical past. Additionally it is an instance of Crosby’s potential to return by way of within the clutch. 

Main by a objective with lower than a minute left in regulation, the sellout crowd Detroit was counting down the seconds earlier than their Pink Wings would hoist the Stanley Cup. However as a substitute of witnessing a celebration, the group watched in surprised silence after Crosby and Marian Hossa assisted on Maxime Talbot’s tying objective. 

With the Pink Wings making an attempt to clear the puck, Crosby stored possession in Detroit’s zone earlier than discovering Hossa, who lofted a move that Talbot received previous goaltender Chris Osgood. The groups then engaged in two scoreless additional time durations earlier than Petr Sykora delivered the game-winner halfway by way of the third additional time.

10. An unbelievable rookie season 

It did not take lengthy for Crosby to make an impression. At 18, Crosby tallied his first profession level (an help to teammate Mark Recchi) in his first sport to start out off a memorable rookie season that noticed him register 102 factors, the fifth-most within the league that season. 

One in every of Crosby’s most memorable moments that 12 months passed off in a mid-November sport towards the rival Flyers in Philadelphia. Crosby assisted on the sport’s first objective, scored the sport’s second objective after which scored the game-winner in additional time. 

Pretty much as good as his rookie season was, Crosby completed behind Washington’s Alexander Ovechkin for Rookie of the 12 months honors. It was a becoming outcome given the rivalry the 2 generational abilities have shared over the previous 20 years. 

9. Winter Basic-winning objective

So far as particular person moments are involved, Crosby’s game-winning shootout objective towards the Buffalo Sabres within the first NHL Winter Basic is an all-time basic. After aiding on Pittsburgh’s solely objective in regulation, Crosby silenced the partisan crowd of 71,217 followers after placing the puck between goaltender Ryan Miller’s legs and into the again of the online, lifting Pittsburgh to a 2-1 win. 

8. Youngest scoring champion 

Crosby constructed off of his spectacular rookie season with a fair higher sophomore marketing campaign. In the course of the 2006-07 season, Crosby grew to become the youngest participant in NHL historical past to steer the league in scoring after he tallied a profession excessive 120 factors. 

Crosby’s success that season led to him successful his first Hart Memorial Trophy, awarded to the league’s most precious participant. It additionally coincided with the Penguins making the playoffs for the primary time in six years. That 12 months marked the primary of 16 consecutive playoff seasons for Pittsburgh. 

This season was additionally notable in that it marked the primary time that Crosby wore the captain’s “C” on his jersey. 

7. Foiling the Flyers 

The Penguins’ series-clinching win over the Flyers in Recreation 6 of the primary spherical of the 2009 playoffs is most remembered for Talbot’s shush to the group after his combat that appeared to spearhead the Penguins’ comeback from a 3-0 deficit. However Crosby additionally performed a key function as he scored the tying and clinching targets as Pittsburgh eradicated its rival. 

That sport just about sums up Crosby’s profession towards Philadelphia. No participant in NHL historical past has scored extra factors or targets towards the Flyers. 

6. Capital punishment 

The Penguins-Capitals showdown within the second spherical of the 2009 playoffs was a defining second within the Crosby-Ovechkin rivalry. After dropping the primary two video games, Crosby and the Penguins rallied to win three straight earlier than dropping in additional time at house in Recreation 6. 

In Washington for Recreation 7, Marc-Andre Fleury set the tone early with a glove save on Ovechkin. Crosby capitalized moments later when he buried a deflected move previous Semyon Varlamov for the sport’s first objective. Crosby’s objective set off an avalanche of factors for the Penguins, who raced out to a 5-0 lead halfway by way of the second. It was 5-1 when Crosby scored Pittsburgh’s closing objective of the night time early within the third. 

The Penguins went onto seize their first Stanley Cup since 1992, defeating the Pink Wings in an exhilarating seven-game collection. Whereas Crosby performed a key function within the championship, the Conn Smythe Award was given to his teammate, Evgeni Malkin, who scored a whopping 36 factors throughout the postseason. 

5. Again on high 

It is arduous to consider now, however there was some extent when many feared that Crosby’s profession would finish prematurely after he suffered a number of head injures in 2011. After enjoying in simply 22 video games throughout the 2011-12 season, Crosby missed extra time throughout the 2012-13 season after breaking his jaw. 

Crosby returned to type the next season, nevertheless, main the NHL in each assists (68) and factors (104) en path to successful his second Artwork Ross Trophy along with the Hart Memorial Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award. 

4. Passing “The Nice One”

Together with having his profession file for targets scored damaged by Ovechkin, Wayne Gretzky noticed one other considered one of his data damaged throughout the 2024-25 season. On March 27, Crosby clinched his twentieth consecutive season averaging at the least one level a sport after scoring a objective towards the Sabres. Gretzky had completed that feat in 19 straight seasons.

“Consistency and work ethic and keenness … it is a accountability that you must one another,” Crosby mentioned after topping Gretzky. “I believe that consistency, it is at all times a piece in progress. On daily basis isn’t excellent. There are occasions which are harder than others throughout the 12 months. I at all times attempt to preserve that in thoughts. However that does not imply you are not going to have unhealthy days or days the place you are not at your finest, however you attempt to not allow them to bunch collectively.”

3. Crosby wins Conn Smythe as Pens win back-to-back Cups 

Whereas he’s considered one of finest objective scorers in NHL historical past, Crosby has been much more productive at organising his teammates. He is at the moment tied for sixteenth all-time in targets scored and is tenth in profession assists. 

Given these stats, it is becoming that the Penguins’ third and most up-to-date Stanley Cup included a number of large assists from Crosby throughout the postseason. He assisted on Chris Kunitz’s objective that gave Pittsburgh a win over Ottawa in Recreation 7 of the 2017 Japanese Convention Remaining. And in Recreation 5 of the Stanley Cup Remaining, Crosby tallied three assists in Pittsburgh’s win over the Nashville Predators. Pittsburgh then received Recreation 6 to develop into the NHL’s first repeat champion in 19 years.  

2. Crosby leads Pens to 2016 Stanley Cup 

After a number of disappointing playoff outcomes, Crosby and the Penguins received again to the mountaintop in 2016, capturing their first Stanley Cup in seven years. Within the course of, Crosby received his first Conn Smythe Trophy after making a number of large performs throughout Pittsburgh’s run by way of the playoffs. 

Arguably the largest objective of Crosby’s profession occurred throughout Recreation 2 of the Japanese Convention Remaining. After dropping Recreation 1 to the Lightning, the Penguins raced out to a 2-0 lead in Recreation 2 earlier than permitting two unanswered targets. The sport in the end went into additional time, the place Crosby delivered the game-winner simply 40 seconds into the additional session. Crosby buried his shot that was arrange by Bryan Rust on the left wing. 

After defeating the Lightning in a grueling seven-game collection, the Penguins entered Recreation 6 of their Stanley Cup Remaining showdown with the Sharks with a 3-2 collection lead. In what was in the end the collection clincher for Pittsburgh, Crosby assisted on longtime teammate Kris Letang’s game-winning objective within the second interval and on Patric Hornqvist’s empty-net tally within the closing minutes. 

1. The Golden Purpose 

A part of Crosby’s legacy is his success enjoying for Workforce Canada. He’s a mixed 48-6-1, together with two Olympic gold medals, gold medals within the IIHL World Championship (2015) and the World Cup of Hockey (2016), and a victory within the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off. Workforce Canada received 26 consecutive video games with Crosby from 2010-25. 

Crosby’s best second whereas enjoying for Workforce Canada — and arguably his best second as knowledgeable hockey participant — occurred towards Workforce USA within the gold medal sport within the 2010 Olympics. In additional time, Crosby lifted his workforce to victory when he took Jarome Iginla’s move and rifled it previous Ryan Miller. 

Whereas the objective did not do something to endear himself to Workforce USA followers, it did elevate Crosby’s stature as being considered one of Canada’s all-time nice gamers, a fraternity that additionally contains Gretzky, Bobby Orr and Gordie Howe.