Sidney Crosby Timeline (Primer) Part 2
Jun. 29th, 2012 01:51 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
maskitheclownPart 1
24. January 2007 is also when an All-Star game happened in which Ovechkin and Sidney played together. And they lost, but fun was had.
Due to injuries Sidney didn't play in any of the All-Star games later.
May 31st 2007, when the season ended for them, he was made the Captain of the team (yes, youngest captain ever in NHL). It had been offered to him during the season but he turned it down.
"I just thought it wasn't right for me. As a team, we were playing great and you don't want to disrupt things like that. Individually, I was not ready to accept that responsibility quite yet. Going through the playoffs and having that experience has probably given me more confidence. I understand there is going to be a lot more responsibility on my shoulders with this, but it's something I'm ready for, I feel very comfortable with it and I'm just excited to get things going."
When he was made captain he talked to the veterans on the team to... well, he says it nicely but I'm going for "get their blessing." And they gave it.
My opinion is, he's not particularly modest, I don't even think he has a reason to be (he's at that point where modesty can't be anything but eyeroll-inducing) but he's realistic about the game and his options and abilities.
From what I can tell, being named the captain was sort of the turning point. Up until then he was super duper polite good boy and everyone was just looking at him being all impressed with what he can do, even if they disliked him. But after this he started letting his inner jerkface breathe some air every now and then, and people started grinding their teeth in his general direction.
You'll hear a lot about him being a robot. I think most people say it lovingly and as someone who often comes off exactly as bland as he does in interviews, I don't mind much. I'm sure he's different around friends and family, but with his teammates saying things like "he's not the same unless he's in the rink, like he's more at home in a rink than anywhere else*" you can't deny he's probably a bit, erm, overly focused on hockey. Which, hey, it seems to be working out for him so yay :)
*Random things we learn in that video: He can quote Friends' episodes and now that he's getting better at replying he uses "bag of milk" to insult people. (Colby Armstrong mentions Friends in another interview: "He doesn't know anything about TV shows, not like I do," Armstrong confides. "He likes 'Friends.' I know. It hurts." and this article is relevant for other things I'll mention later.)
All that said though, I think he's secretly a bit of a dick. Not a lot, he's way too polite way too often for it all to be faked, but just enough to stir things up every now and then. :) Like that time with the glove (and his subsequent comment on it) and that time with not shaking Lindstrom's hand (and his comment on it, both of which I mention later) aaand that time with the Prince of Wales Trophy.
And then media latches on to it and jerks off all over it.
Pushing the glove away.
Comment:
"Pfff."
:D
And while I'm on his personality I'm gonna mention the obvious - he's VERY competitive. But also wow, when he's in captain mode he does not shut up. He lets people know what he's doing and what they should be doing and what the other side is doing :D He does it in hockey and playing Socom on PSP :)
In third season (2007–2008) he missed 21+7 games because of an ankle sprain.
In early 2008 Colby Armstrong was traded to Thrashers. He was another good friend of Sidney's and they used to room together on trips. From the same article as Friend's quote: "Armstrong is a perfect foil for Crosby. He is a physical, dogged player. Off the ice, he is irreverent and jocular. It is no coincidence Crosby gravitates toward him. 'I look at my friends from junior or now, the pattern never changes. There are always those kinds of guys. I don't think it's by fluke,' Crosby says. 'When you're around each other, you know what's going on, whether you're having a bad day, a good day, that kind of thing. Those guys are guys who keep everything light, and [it's] kind of always a good feeling to be around those guys, just guys that are fun to be around. Sometimes, you can't do the things that they do, so I always kind of live through him sometimes.'"
He's pretty self aware, basically. I guess having reporters stick microphones under your nose and ask you ridiculously personal questions can force you into that.
Next season (2008-2009) he picked up The Prince of Wales Trophy which is apparently a big deal.
This is what Internet tells me: "The Prince of Wales Trophy, also known as the Wales Trophy, is an award presented by the National Hockey League (NHL) to the Eastern Conference (formerly the Wales Conference) playoff champions, prior to the final series of games for the Stanley Cup. [...] A superstition that is prevalent among many of today's NHL players is that no player should either touch or hoist the Wales [...] Trophy after they have won the conference playoffs."
And then he went on to win the Stanley Cup. And in case there was any doubt, he was the youngest NHL captain to win it.
Every player gets a day with the cup and he reserved his day for his birthday.
After they won he was criticized that he wouldn't shake hands with some Detroit players after the Penguins won. Mainly their captain, Nicklas Lidstrom. His reply?
"I just won the Stanley Cup. I think I have the right to celebrate with my teammates. I know it's not easy waiting around...I understand if they don't feel like waiting around. But you know what? It's the easiest thing to do in the world, to shake hands after you win. I had no intentions of trying to skip guys and not shake their hands. I think that was a pretty unreasonable comment."
Aaand the next season (2009-2010) he kept on winning trophies and awards. My favorite: The Mark Messier Leadership Award, for 'superior leader within the sport, setting a positive example through on-ice performance, motivation of team members and a dedication to the community'.
Also, during this season 2010 Olympics in Vancouver happened, or as I like to call them TOEWS AND CROSBY PLAYING TOGETHER YAY! (13–28 February 2010)
Nov. 18th 2009 he carried the Olympic torch in Nova Scotia.
Sidney was named Alternate Captain and again people had issues with it, but at the same time they had no problem expecting miracles from him.
This article is long but it was written before the Olympics and can show you the amount of pressure that was on him at the time.
In short, he won Canada the gold seven minutes and forty seconds into overtime against the United States. Even though that got him the status of a national hero, before that game everyone was shitting on him because he had no points in the previous two games. It was all conveniently forgotten when Canada won.
I am woefully short on info here but I know this happened and Toews spent a lot of time looking at him lovingly and trying not to hug him.
Season 2010-2011 sucked.
Well, it started out ok, with Sidney having a 25 games scoring streak and the dead worm over his lip, but then the scoring streak stopped and on 2011 January 1st and then 5th again he got hit and ended up with a concussion. It kept him out of the game all the way to the next season*, November 2011, but after just 7 games the concussion symptoms came back and he had to stop playing again until March 15th 2012.
And a more artistic version of same:
*That's ok tho, he still beat the NHL record for fewest games played by an NHL team's points leader by winning 66 points in 41 games.
O.o
This is what Toews had to say about Sidney's long wait to get back in the game (which some people also had issues with O.o):
"He’s a good guy to look at to kind of remind you that it’s not a good thing to rush. He’s the best there is in this game. I’m sure he wants to get back in there with his team as much as anybody. There has got to be all sorts of pressure from all over for a guy like that to come back and maybe play through something like this. He was being smart about it, so that’s what you’ve got to do."
Also, I keep hearing Toews talked to Sidney about his concussion when Toews himself had one, but I can't find proof :(
Basically, it sucked, and then because secretly the NHL hates Sidney, it sucked some more. July 1, 2011 Max Talbot, teammate and friend signed for the Philadelphia Flyers, their in-state rival.
Even after that though, Talbot had this to say:
"On not being afraid to admit he’s a close friend of Crosby after leaving the Penguins for the Flyers this summer: I’ve known him for 10 years. He’s a great guy, a great person. I’m not afraid to admit I’m his friend. I probably will be all my life. It’s friendship. I’ve known him since he was 13 years old. It’s not because all of a sudden I changed teams that he’s a bad guy. He’s someone I respect. He’s a great competitor and great for the game.
On knowing Crosby since age 13: We have the same agent. We had a camp in LA. We were there together. He was already probably better than me when he was 13 and I was 16. He was better than a lot of people. You always knew that you had something special in him."
Eventually they sort of got better at talking shit at each other through media because you just can't have cuddly things in sports, but it doesn't seem to be too bad.
Things which are awesome about them:
Rebook... commercial?
But mostly, the B Roll :D
I know it's a commercial but I'm convinced this is 90% of what they do for fun anyway.
In an interview in November 2010 Kris Letang said closest friends on the team were Sid and Marc-André Fleury.
What I know about them: They sit together on the plane, always in the same seats because Sidney and Universe, and they say they win PSP games together, hm.
I think they room together on trips now.
Example of Sidney being a Captain (C), notice he's like, the only one talking.
Sidney explaining how he can totally move any time he wants to, no, really, he can.
So due to the concussion in season 2011-2012 he only played 22 games, but it was enough to score his 600th point in career because that's just how he rolls.
This year Sidney is signing, pretty much as I'm writing this, a 12 year contract with the Penguins, worth $8,7mil per year, because #87 and Sidney and Universe. Of course the media are saying it could be a bad idea because of his concussion (even though probably no). For a group of people who named him a whiner, they sure do whine about him a lot.
Articles about Sidney tend to fall on the hate or love side of the spectrum and this one is definitely worshipy, but here's a good view of some of the practical issues of being a star in a team.
"The group waits as players and coaches exit the hotel to board the bus to the morning skate. Crosby is nowhere in the main group because he's being led out a side entrance and onto the bus."
...
"I don't want to say I drag them down, but sometimes there are situations where they have to wait for me if I'm signing or people come to the table and things like that. It's probably something I don't want to put them through. So, it's the best for everyone if we can kind of just pick our spots."
Right, so, I think that brings us to today and covers all of Sidney's hockey friends who aren't Jordan Staal whose wedding Sidney went to recently and then NHL got jealous and handed Staal over to the Hurricanes. Or something.
Basically the only reason Malkin is still playing there is because he never made Sidney visit him in Russia.
Well, except for this whole thing where apparently Crosby (and thus Penguins) want to get Zach Parise (who also went to Shattuck St. Mary’s and currently plays for the Devils) to play with and for them. I would not be unhappy about this lemme tell you.
Now, I don't want to be all "look he's a wonderful person because he does good things" because he's rich and often when he's doing good things there's a camera there to witness it, but he seems to really like kids and spends a lot of time trying to make their lives better which, camera or not, is a good thing. He is collaborating with big names like Hortons and Reebok to get kids into hockey, in both USA and Canada, giving them free equipment and training.
"I can always put myself in their situation. I easily reflect back on being young," Crosby says. "I have a younger sister; [Mario Lemieux's] got four younger kids. There's something about younger kids that I just, I want to see them be happy."
So, yeah, his soft spot are kids.
If you actually read all of this, good job. Have some porn as a reward:
With some extras:
One
Two (I love the look on her face)
Three
Four
Five
And awesome funny collection vids.
Funny moments.
Sidney laughing.
Pittsburgh Penguins In the Room. This started airing in December 2011, I think. It's not so much Sidney-centric but I like all the cool music and exciting planning and head nodding and "are you ready Sid? Good, 'cause you're starting."
Anything I forgot, got wrong or just don't know about but you think is important, let me know. I'll probably edit it in :)
One final thing I guess is the fics but honestly I'm tired and I can't, so you'll get the very basics but feel free to leave some fic love in the comments.
Now, I like long fics with some angst and some fluff and some nc-17. Luckily for me, this fandom doesn't even know any other kind exists. (Don't tell them!)
Heart in Hand by salifiable - Sid had realized very early on that for better or worse, he would be linked to Alexander Ovechkin for the rest of his life. But he never expected anything like this.
Taken by the Sea by notamagnet - Sidney wasn't looking for love, he was just looking to play hockey again, but he found Ryan anyway. (Sidney Crosby/OMC)
From Wood and From Ivory by vamm_goda - Sidney Crosby, captain of the high school hockey team the Seabirds, gets more than he bargained for when Russian Exchange student Alex Ovechkin shows up. Suddenly, Sid’s whole universe is upside down, his hard-fought routine is disrupted, and his world-view altered.
See this Through by impertinence - Sidney's drunk when he orders a Russian bride. He doesn't expect anyone to show up - and he definitely doesn't expect that person to be an awkward-looking guy who barely speaks English.
24. January 2007 is also when an All-Star game happened in which Ovechkin and Sidney played together. And they lost, but fun was had.
Due to injuries Sidney didn't play in any of the All-Star games later.
May 31st 2007, when the season ended for them, he was made the Captain of the team (yes, youngest captain ever in NHL). It had been offered to him during the season but he turned it down.
"I just thought it wasn't right for me. As a team, we were playing great and you don't want to disrupt things like that. Individually, I was not ready to accept that responsibility quite yet. Going through the playoffs and having that experience has probably given me more confidence. I understand there is going to be a lot more responsibility on my shoulders with this, but it's something I'm ready for, I feel very comfortable with it and I'm just excited to get things going."
When he was made captain he talked to the veterans on the team to... well, he says it nicely but I'm going for "get their blessing." And they gave it.
My opinion is, he's not particularly modest, I don't even think he has a reason to be (he's at that point where modesty can't be anything but eyeroll-inducing) but he's realistic about the game and his options and abilities.
From what I can tell, being named the captain was sort of the turning point. Up until then he was super duper polite good boy and everyone was just looking at him being all impressed with what he can do, even if they disliked him. But after this he started letting his inner jerkface breathe some air every now and then, and people started grinding their teeth in his general direction.
You'll hear a lot about him being a robot. I think most people say it lovingly and as someone who often comes off exactly as bland as he does in interviews, I don't mind much. I'm sure he's different around friends and family, but with his teammates saying things like "he's not the same unless he's in the rink, like he's more at home in a rink than anywhere else*" you can't deny he's probably a bit, erm, overly focused on hockey. Which, hey, it seems to be working out for him so yay :)
*Random things we learn in that video: He can quote Friends' episodes and now that he's getting better at replying he uses "bag of milk" to insult people. (Colby Armstrong mentions Friends in another interview: "He doesn't know anything about TV shows, not like I do," Armstrong confides. "He likes 'Friends.' I know. It hurts." and this article is relevant for other things I'll mention later.)
All that said though, I think he's secretly a bit of a dick. Not a lot, he's way too polite way too often for it all to be faked, but just enough to stir things up every now and then. :) Like that time with the glove (and his subsequent comment on it) and that time with not shaking Lindstrom's hand (and his comment on it, both of which I mention later) aaand that time with the Prince of Wales Trophy.
And then media latches on to it and jerks off all over it.
Pushing the glove away.
Comment:
"Pfff."
:D
And while I'm on his personality I'm gonna mention the obvious - he's VERY competitive. But also wow, when he's in captain mode he does not shut up. He lets people know what he's doing and what they should be doing and what the other side is doing :D He does it in hockey and playing Socom on PSP :)
In third season (2007–2008) he missed 21+7 games because of an ankle sprain.
In early 2008 Colby Armstrong was traded to Thrashers. He was another good friend of Sidney's and they used to room together on trips. From the same article as Friend's quote: "Armstrong is a perfect foil for Crosby. He is a physical, dogged player. Off the ice, he is irreverent and jocular. It is no coincidence Crosby gravitates toward him. 'I look at my friends from junior or now, the pattern never changes. There are always those kinds of guys. I don't think it's by fluke,' Crosby says. 'When you're around each other, you know what's going on, whether you're having a bad day, a good day, that kind of thing. Those guys are guys who keep everything light, and [it's] kind of always a good feeling to be around those guys, just guys that are fun to be around. Sometimes, you can't do the things that they do, so I always kind of live through him sometimes.'"
He's pretty self aware, basically. I guess having reporters stick microphones under your nose and ask you ridiculously personal questions can force you into that.
Next season (2008-2009) he picked up The Prince of Wales Trophy which is apparently a big deal.
This is what Internet tells me: "The Prince of Wales Trophy, also known as the Wales Trophy, is an award presented by the National Hockey League (NHL) to the Eastern Conference (formerly the Wales Conference) playoff champions, prior to the final series of games for the Stanley Cup. [...] A superstition that is prevalent among many of today's NHL players is that no player should either touch or hoist the Wales [...] Trophy after they have won the conference playoffs."
And then he went on to win the Stanley Cup. And in case there was any doubt, he was the youngest NHL captain to win it.
Every player gets a day with the cup and he reserved his day for his birthday.
After they won he was criticized that he wouldn't shake hands with some Detroit players after the Penguins won. Mainly their captain, Nicklas Lidstrom. His reply?
"I just won the Stanley Cup. I think I have the right to celebrate with my teammates. I know it's not easy waiting around...I understand if they don't feel like waiting around. But you know what? It's the easiest thing to do in the world, to shake hands after you win. I had no intentions of trying to skip guys and not shake their hands. I think that was a pretty unreasonable comment."
Aaand the next season (2009-2010) he kept on winning trophies and awards. My favorite: The Mark Messier Leadership Award, for 'superior leader within the sport, setting a positive example through on-ice performance, motivation of team members and a dedication to the community'.
Also, during this season 2010 Olympics in Vancouver happened, or as I like to call them TOEWS AND CROSBY PLAYING TOGETHER YAY! (13–28 February 2010)
Nov. 18th 2009 he carried the Olympic torch in Nova Scotia.
Sidney was named Alternate Captain and again people had issues with it, but at the same time they had no problem expecting miracles from him.
This article is long but it was written before the Olympics and can show you the amount of pressure that was on him at the time.
In short, he won Canada the gold seven minutes and forty seconds into overtime against the United States. Even though that got him the status of a national hero, before that game everyone was shitting on him because he had no points in the previous two games. It was all conveniently forgotten when Canada won.
I am woefully short on info here but I know this happened and Toews spent a lot of time looking at him lovingly and trying not to hug him.
Season 2010-2011 sucked.
Well, it started out ok, with Sidney having a 25 games scoring streak and the dead worm over his lip, but then the scoring streak stopped and on 2011 January 1st and then 5th again he got hit and ended up with a concussion. It kept him out of the game all the way to the next season*, November 2011, but after just 7 games the concussion symptoms came back and he had to stop playing again until March 15th 2012.
And a more artistic version of same:
*That's ok tho, he still beat the NHL record for fewest games played by an NHL team's points leader by winning 66 points in 41 games.
O.o
This is what Toews had to say about Sidney's long wait to get back in the game (which some people also had issues with O.o):
"He’s a good guy to look at to kind of remind you that it’s not a good thing to rush. He’s the best there is in this game. I’m sure he wants to get back in there with his team as much as anybody. There has got to be all sorts of pressure from all over for a guy like that to come back and maybe play through something like this. He was being smart about it, so that’s what you’ve got to do."
Also, I keep hearing Toews talked to Sidney about his concussion when Toews himself had one, but I can't find proof :(
Basically, it sucked, and then because secretly the NHL hates Sidney, it sucked some more. July 1, 2011 Max Talbot, teammate and friend signed for the Philadelphia Flyers, their in-state rival.
Even after that though, Talbot had this to say:
"On not being afraid to admit he’s a close friend of Crosby after leaving the Penguins for the Flyers this summer: I’ve known him for 10 years. He’s a great guy, a great person. I’m not afraid to admit I’m his friend. I probably will be all my life. It’s friendship. I’ve known him since he was 13 years old. It’s not because all of a sudden I changed teams that he’s a bad guy. He’s someone I respect. He’s a great competitor and great for the game.
On knowing Crosby since age 13: We have the same agent. We had a camp in LA. We were there together. He was already probably better than me when he was 13 and I was 16. He was better than a lot of people. You always knew that you had something special in him."
Eventually they sort of got better at talking shit at each other through media because you just can't have cuddly things in sports, but it doesn't seem to be too bad.
Things which are awesome about them:
Rebook... commercial?
But mostly, the B Roll :D
I know it's a commercial but I'm convinced this is 90% of what they do for fun anyway.
In an interview in November 2010 Kris Letang said closest friends on the team were Sid and Marc-André Fleury.
What I know about them: They sit together on the plane, always in the same seats because Sidney and Universe, and they say they win PSP games together, hm.
I think they room together on trips now.
Example of Sidney being a Captain (C), notice he's like, the only one talking.
Sidney explaining how he can totally move any time he wants to, no, really, he can.
So due to the concussion in season 2011-2012 he only played 22 games, but it was enough to score his 600th point in career because that's just how he rolls.
This year Sidney is signing, pretty much as I'm writing this, a 12 year contract with the Penguins, worth $8,7mil per year, because #87 and Sidney and Universe. Of course the media are saying it could be a bad idea because of his concussion (even though probably no). For a group of people who named him a whiner, they sure do whine about him a lot.
Articles about Sidney tend to fall on the hate or love side of the spectrum and this one is definitely worshipy, but here's a good view of some of the practical issues of being a star in a team.
"The group waits as players and coaches exit the hotel to board the bus to the morning skate. Crosby is nowhere in the main group because he's being led out a side entrance and onto the bus."
...
"I don't want to say I drag them down, but sometimes there are situations where they have to wait for me if I'm signing or people come to the table and things like that. It's probably something I don't want to put them through. So, it's the best for everyone if we can kind of just pick our spots."
Right, so, I think that brings us to today and covers all of Sidney's hockey friends who aren't Jordan Staal whose wedding Sidney went to recently and then NHL got jealous and handed Staal over to the Hurricanes. Or something.
Basically the only reason Malkin is still playing there is because he never made Sidney visit him in Russia.
Well, except for this whole thing where apparently Crosby (and thus Penguins) want to get Zach Parise (who also went to Shattuck St. Mary’s and currently plays for the Devils) to play with and for them. I would not be unhappy about this lemme tell you.
Now, I don't want to be all "look he's a wonderful person because he does good things" because he's rich and often when he's doing good things there's a camera there to witness it, but he seems to really like kids and spends a lot of time trying to make their lives better which, camera or not, is a good thing. He is collaborating with big names like Hortons and Reebok to get kids into hockey, in both USA and Canada, giving them free equipment and training.
"I can always put myself in their situation. I easily reflect back on being young," Crosby says. "I have a younger sister; [Mario Lemieux's] got four younger kids. There's something about younger kids that I just, I want to see them be happy."
So, yeah, his soft spot are kids.
If you actually read all of this, good job. Have some porn as a reward:
With some extras:
One
Two (I love the look on her face)
Three
Four
Five
And awesome funny collection vids.
Funny moments.
Sidney laughing.
Pittsburgh Penguins In the Room. This started airing in December 2011, I think. It's not so much Sidney-centric but I like all the cool music and exciting planning and head nodding and "are you ready Sid? Good, 'cause you're starting."
Anything I forgot, got wrong or just don't know about but you think is important, let me know. I'll probably edit it in :)
One final thing I guess is the fics but honestly I'm tired and I can't, so you'll get the very basics but feel free to leave some fic love in the comments.
Now, I like long fics with some angst and some fluff and some nc-17. Luckily for me, this fandom doesn't even know any other kind exists. (Don't tell them!)
Heart in Hand by salifiable - Sid had realized very early on that for better or worse, he would be linked to Alexander Ovechkin for the rest of his life. But he never expected anything like this.
Taken by the Sea by notamagnet - Sidney wasn't looking for love, he was just looking to play hockey again, but he found Ryan anyway. (Sidney Crosby/OMC)
From Wood and From Ivory by vamm_goda - Sidney Crosby, captain of the high school hockey team the Seabirds, gets more than he bargained for when Russian Exchange student Alex Ovechkin shows up. Suddenly, Sid’s whole universe is upside down, his hard-fought routine is disrupted, and his world-view altered.
See this Through by impertinence - Sidney's drunk when he orders a Russian bride. He doesn't expect anyone to show up - and he definitely doesn't expect that person to be an awkward-looking guy who barely speaks English.
no subject
Date: 2012-06-29 06:30 pm (UTC)This was awesome, thank you for posting! I'm not gonna go find them now, but I have a giant list of hockey fic recs that I'm going to post sometime soon, and there will definitely be some Crosby in that. (Although have you read the epic Sid/Tazer Olympics fic with the body modding? If you're into that pairing and you haven't read that fic, I'll dig up the link for you, because it's really fantastic.)
no subject
Date: 2012-06-29 06:33 pm (UTC)Ohh, the one with the artistic scars (there's a word for it that I forgot)? YES I read it it's awesome! <3
Thank you, I'm glad you liked it :)
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Date: 2012-06-29 06:35 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2012-06-30 07:16 pm (UTC)This is seriously great! I love all your details about friendships and personality, on top of the handy-dandy dates :)
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Date: 2012-07-01 05:47 am (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2012-07-23 03:05 pm (UTC)