I’ve covered Crosby for the past 13 years, and during that time, I’ve been asked countless times if Crosby is “as nice as he seems.”
My typical response: “No. He’s actually much nicer.”
My job presents the privilege of getting to see people behind the scenes when the cameras are off. In those moments, you get to observe who people really are, for better or worse. These moments are when Crosby is at his best. He treats people who are down on their luck better than he shoots a backhand.
So many snapshots of Crosby treating people well are in my mind that I could transform this from an article into a book. A few years back in Minnesota, after a Penguins loss, Crosby was chatting with a child in a wheelchair when I entered the postgame dressing room. Twenty minutes later, when I walked past the same hallway, Crosby was sitting on the floor so he could be closer to eye level with the child, still talking away. I bring this story up because there are hundreds of a similar nature.
This is the guy who goes to Children’s Hospital regularly to visit patients but doesn’t want the notoriety. He’s the person who takes rookies out to dinner so they don’t feel alone in a new city.
He’s a Pittsburgher in every good way. When Marc-Andre Fleury agreed to join the Vegas Golden Knights, so many fans in this city cried. So, too, did Crosby. When Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang spoke about Crosby during a ceremony honoring him for his 1,000th NHL game played, much of the fan base had a tear in its eye. So, too, did Crosby.
Athletes have never really been heroes. That’s a convenient myth from a long time ago, when social media didn’t exist and the media that did exist protected the biggest names. Let’s be honest: Professional athletes, while often nice people, live in a different reality than the rest of us. As a result, they can often be pampered at best, and entitled at worst. They’re millionaires who are worshiped by total strangers. It’s a bad mix.
Crosby just might be different, though. His character exceeds everything he’s done on the ice, and he’s probably one of the five greatest players who ever lived. Let that sink in.
Health permitting, I believe he will play until he’s 40. Every day he spends in Pittsburgh is a blessing.
In an era when athletes are often anything but heroic and the negative headlines far outweigh the positive ones, you can feel safe buying your child a Crosby jersey.
awwwww
