Sidney Crosby Breaks Silence After Passing Mario Lemieux to Set New Penguins Franchise Record
Photo credit: DK Pittsburgh Sports
Last night, Sidney Crosby passed Mario Lemieux for most team points in regular-season and playoffs history, and he has broken his silence and commented on the feat.
Sidney Crosby hit another milestone Tuesday in Vancouver, as he passed Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux for the most total points combined in Pittsburgh Penguins history.
Crosby's game-breaking assist put him at 1,896 career regular-season and playoffs combined points, one better than Lemieux's 1,895, further solidifying his status as one of hockey's all-time greats.
The milestone also serves to underscore Crosby's unprecedented longevity and dedication, and he broke his silence on this wonderful achievement.
"It took me 500 more games," Crosby told Dan Potash with a laugh during the postgame on-ice interview. "It means I've been around for a long time, and numbers are numbers. But the memories and everything that's been a part of the last 21 years has been pretty special, so I appreciate that."
He later added, "Been here for a long time and been fortunate to play with some great players. That's how I look at it."
He later added, "Been here for a long time and been fortunate to play with some great players. That's how I look at it."
In his 21st year in the NHL, he joins an elite club of players, Alex Delvecchio, Stan Mikita, Steve Yzerman, and Alex Ovechkin, to have played with the same team for more than two decades.
He's the league's longest-serving captain, too, having worn the "C" for 19 consecutive years.
Mario Lemieux housed Sidney Crosby during his rookie campaign as an 18-year-old
Crosby has been closely associated with Lemieux on and off the ice. In his 18-year-old rookie season, Crosby lived in Lemieux's home in Sewickley, where "Super Mario" helped introduce Crosby to life in the NHL.
"I talk about the first day, and you think about first impressions - I didn't know a lot about Pittsburgh prior to being drafted, and I showed up at the airport and could barely move," Crosby said.
"The support that I felt from day one, the relationships that I formed here, the memories, the teammates, the fans... I mean, you go down the list. I'm so grateful and thankful that I've had the opportunity to play here as long as I have. And I think anyone who knows me knows what the city means to me and how special it is."
"The support that I felt from day one, the relationships that I formed here, the memories, the teammates, the fans... I mean, you go down the list. I'm so grateful and thankful that I've had the opportunity to play here as long as I have. And I think anyone who knows me knows what the city means to me and how special it is."
Their friendship is still intact today; Lemieux even popped into the locker room following Pittsburgh's home opener a couple of weeks ago.
"Coming in, there's so many new things and the expectations and everything that comes with it as a young player," Crosby said. "So, having someone like Mario and his family there to just keep things as normal as possible, to be there for anything that I needed, any questions I had, just to keep things as normal as they could possibly be given the situation... and then be able to learn from someone like him, who's been through so much and played at the level that he did and went through the adversity that he did... and just his family as a whole, is so important.
"So yeah, I don't know if I can put into words how much it means, but it's meant a lot, and I really cherish that. That relationship and his family and everything that they've done for me."
"So yeah, I don't know if I can put into words how much it means, but it's meant a lot, and I really cherish that. That relationship and his family and everything that they've done for me."
At age 38, Crosby is still performing at an elite level. His goal against Vancouver was his fourth in seven games, briefly tying the scorching-hot Justin Brazeau for the team lead.
Crosby is also nearing the 1,700 point plateau, as well as Lemieux's career record of 1,723 with 1,694 points in the regular season.
Even as statistics mount and milestones accumulate, Crosby's consistency, leadership, and commitment to Pittsburgh are his greatest accomplishments, a legacy worth the player who once lived at Mario Lemieux's house.
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