Sidney Crosby Sidney Patrick Crosby ( born August 7 , 1987 ) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player and captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) . Crosby was drafted by the Penguins out of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League ( QMJHL ) first overall after earning back - to - back CHL Player of the Year awards and leading his club to a berth in the 2005 Memorial Cup during his two - year major junior career with the Rimouski Océanic . Nicknamed " The Next One " , he was one of the most highly regarded draft picks in hockey history , leading many to refer to the 2005 Draft Lottery as the " Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes " . In his first NHL season , Crosby finished sixth in scoring with 102 points ( 39 goals , 63 assists ) . By his second season , he led the NHL with 120 points ( 36 goals , 84 assists ) to capture the Art Ross Trophy , becoming the youngest player and the only teenager to win a scoring title in any major North American sports league . That same season , Crosby won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the most valuable player as determined by the Professional Hockey Writers Association , and the Lester B . Pearson Award as the most valuable player as determined by the NHL Players Association . He is the seventh player in NHL history to have earned all three awards . After losing to the Detroit Red Wings in the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals , Crosby won his first Stanley Cup in 2009 , becoming the youngest captain in NHL history to win the championship . In the 2009 - 2010 season , Crosby finished 2nd in NHL scoring with 109 points ( 51 goals , 58 assists ) . His 51 goals were a new career high and tied him with Steven Stamkos for the league lead in goals , thus earning him his first career Rocket Richard Trophy . At the Annual Awards show , Crosby took home his first Mark Messier Leadership Award . Internationally , Crosby has represented Team Canada in two World Junior Championships , winning silver in 2004 and gold in 2005 . He competed for Team Canada at the 2006 IIHF World Championship and led the tournament in scoring . In the 2010 Winter Olympics , Crosby scored the game - winning goal against the United States to win the gold medal for Canada , 3 – 2 in overtime . Playing career . Early career and junior hockey . Sidney Crosby began playing hockey on his own in his basement at two years old , where he badly damaged the family ' s clothes dryer by constantly shooting pucks at it . He learned to skate at three . At the age of seven , he gave his first newspaper interview . At thirteen , the Nova Scotia Minor Hockey Council refused to allow him to play Midget hockey , alongside seventeen year olds . His family sued and lost . At fourteen , he appeared on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation ' s Hockey Day in Canada , and scored 217 regular season and playoff points to lead his Midget AAA team , the Dartmouth Subways , to second place in the Air Canada Cup . He won both the MVP Award and the Top Scorer Award after scoring 18 points in five games . Opposing players became extremely jealous of Crosby ' s talent , and he had to play through their constant attempts to injure him . Parents taunted and threatened Crosby so harshly , he took to not wearing his jersey between tournament games while he waited to play so that he would not be recognized . Partly because of this mistreatment , Sidney left the country to play for the renowned hockey program at Shattuck - Saint Mary ' s Boarding School in Minnesota for the 2002 – 2003 hockey season . While there , he led the Sabres to the U . S . National Championship . Crosby was selected first overall in the midget draft by the Rimouski Océanic of the QMJHL . In his first exhibition game he scored eight points , leading his teammates to nickname him " Darryl " ( in reference to Darryl Sittler and his ten point game ) . In his first game in the QMJHL , he scored one goal and added two assists . He was named Player of the Week for two consecutive weeks at the start of the season , and won the honour four more times as the season progressed . He was named Player of the Month three times , and Canadian Hockey League ( CHL ) Player of the Week three times . By the end of the season , he had been named Player of the Year , Top Rookie , and Top Scorer — the first QMJHL player to earn all three honours at once . He led the QMJHL with 54 goals and 81 assists in 59 regular season games . In August 2004 , Crosby turned down $ 7 . 5 million over three years to play for the Hamilton franchise of the World Hockey Association , claiming that he was not ready to leave the junior league yet . In 2004 – 05 , the Océanic , led by their top line of Crosby , Marc Pouliot , and Dany Roussin dominated the QMJHL , setting the record for the longest undefeated streak ( 28 games ) and losing only two games in the entire playoffs . The team went to the Memorial Cup finals , but fell in the last game to the London Knights . Despite the physical wear of the tournament , and the certainty of his first overall selection , Crosby attended the NHL prospect combine and impressed scouts , particularly with his personality and self - assurance . During his amateur years , Crosby caught the attention of several journalists and other players , including Wayne Gretzky . When Gretzky was asked if he thought anyone could break his records , he answered that Crosby could , and added that Crosby was the best player he had seen since Mario Lemieux . Crosby is the fifth player to represent Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championships as a sixteen year old ( in 2003 ) . This feat was previously accomplished by Jay Bouwmeester , Jason Spezza , Eric Lindros , and Wayne Gretzky . Crosby stated that his most memorable hockey moment was winning the 2005 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships . NHL career . 2005 – 06 . Sidney Crosby was selected first overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins on July 30 , 2005 . Due to the labour stoppage in the previous season , the 2005 draft was conducted via a weighted lottery based on each team ' s playoff appearances and draft lottery victories in the last four years . This lottery system led to the draft being popularly referred to as the Sidney Crosby Lottery or the Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes . Crosby made his NHL debut on October 5 , 2005 against the New Jersey Devils , and registered an assist on the team ' s first goal of the season , scored by Mark Recchi in a 5 – 1 loss . He scored his first NHL goal in the Penguins ' home opener on October 8 against the Boston Bruins . Despite also having registered two assists for a three - point night , the Penguins were defeated 7 – 6 in overtime . Crosby began his rookie season playing alongside Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux . Unfortunately , Lemieux was forced to retire due to an irregular heartbeat after having played just 26 games of the season . Near the midway point of the season , Penguins head coach Ed Olczyk was fired and replaced by Michel Therrien on December 15 , 2005 . The following day , Therrien designated Crosby as an alternate captain for the Penguins . The move drew criticism from some hockey pundits , including Don Cherry , who claimed that Crosby did not have the experience for the position . He stated , " An 18 - year - old kid says he ' s going to give us ideas . What , from the Quebec League , he ' s going to give them ideas ? Come on . That ' s ridiculous " . Although hopes were high in Pittsburgh for the club to succeed , largely in part to the beginning of Crosby ' s NHL career and bolstered by the acquisitions of Sergei Gonchar , Zigmund Palffy and Mark Recchi , the Penguins still finished with the worst record in the Eastern Conference . Nevertheless , Crosby ' s first NHL campaign was a personal success as he established franchise records in assists ( 63 ) and points ( 102 ) for a rookie , both of which had been previously held by Mario Lemieux . He additionally became the youngest player in NHL history to score 100 points in a single season , and only the seventh rookie ever to hit the benchmark . Overall , Crosby finished sixth in the NHL scoring race and seventh in the NHL in assists . Among Canadian NHL players , he trailed only Joe Thornton and Dany Heatley . Throughout the season , Crosby had battled with Washington Capitals forward and 2004 first - overall pick Alexander Ovechkin for the rookie scoring lead . He would finish second to Ovechkin ' s 106 points and also lose out to the Capitals forward for the Calder Memorial Trophy as NHL rookie of the year . Throughout his first season , Crosby was accused by opposing players and coaches of taking dives and complaining to officials , which was typically attributed to his youth . He became the first rookie to earn 100 penalty minutes and 100 points in the same season , which magnified his reputation for complaining to NHL officials . Hockey analyst Kelly Hrudey compared Crosby to Wayne Gretzky , who had a similar reputation as a " whiner " in his youth , and suggested that as Crosby matured , he would mellow out and his reputation would fade . 2006 – 07 . In his second NHL season , Crosby built on his rookie success . On October 28 , 2006 , Crosby scored his first NHL hat trick in an 8 – 2 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers . His success against the Flyers continued as just over six weeks later , on December 13 , he recorded the first six - point game of his career ( one goal , five assists ) . The multi - point effort vaulted Crosby into the NHL scoring lead , which he would retain for the remainder of the season . He finished the 2006 – 07 NHL season with 36 goals and 84 assists in 79 games to become the first teenager to lead the NHL in scoring since Wayne Gretzky in 1980 . Being only nineteen years old at the time , he became the youngest player in NHL history to win the Art Ross Trophy and the youngest scoring champion in any major North American professional sport . Crosby ' s second NHL season also saw significant improvements for the Penguins franchise as a whole , as the emergence of Calder Trophy - winner Evgeni Malkin and runner - up Jordan Staal complemented the club ' s offence . As a result , the Penguins jumped from last place in the Eastern Conference the previous season to fifth for the club ' s first playoff appearance since 2001 . Playing the Ottawa Senators in the opening round , Crosby scored a goal in his Stanley Cup playoff debut in a 6 – 3 losing effort . He finished the series with 5 points in 5 games as the Penguins were ousted by the eventual Stanley Cup runner - up . Following the Penguins defeat , Crosby was named Pittsburgh ' s team captain on May 31 , 2007 , making him ( at 19 years , 9 months , and 24 days ) the youngest team captain in NHL history . During the season , the Penguins had offered him the captaincy , but he had turned it down . In the press conference naming him the team captain , he explained : “ 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 . ” At the NHL ' s annual awards show later in June 2007 , Crosby completed a rare off - season hat trick , winning the Hart Memorial Trophy and the Lester B . Pearson Award in addition to his previously clinched Art Ross Trophy . He became the youngest player in NHL history to win the Lester B . Pearson , and only the second youngest player ever to win the Hart ( after Gretzky ) . He also became the youngest player ever to be named to the NHL ' s First All - Star Team . 2007 – 08 . With Crosby ' s initial three - year , entry - level contract set to expire at the end of the following season , the Penguins signed him to a five - year , $ 43 . 5 million dollar contract extension on July 10 , 2007 , ensuring his stay with the Penguins through the 2012 – 13 season . Midway through the subsequent season , Crosby recorded a Gordie Howe hat trick on December 20 , 2007 , in a game against the Boston Bruins . His first assist came 55 seconds into the first period . At 8 : 26 of the same period , Crosby scored to give the Penguins a 2 – 0 lead . Then , five minutes and nine seconds into the second frame , Crosby fought defenceman Andrew Ference to complete the hat trick . Nearly a month later , however , on January 18 , 2008 , Crosby suffered a high ankle sprain crashing leg - first into the boards in a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning . As a result , he missed the 2008 All - Star Game , to which he was named a starter . After missing 21 games , he returned on March 4 against the Lightning and earned an assist . Two games after his return , however , he felt his ankle was not up to shape and decided that he needed more time for it to heal . Crosby consequently sat out of the Penguins ' next seven games and returned on March 27 , 2008 to help the Penguins defeat the New York Islanders 3 – 1 . In spite of the injury - shortened campaign , Crosby still managed 72 points in just 53 games . His absence from the Penguins ' lineup served as a stepping stone for teammate Evgeni Malkin , who , now in his second season , was developing into a superstar in his own right . Picking up the offensive slack , Malkin finished second in league scoring to Alexander Ovechkin and was also a Hart Trophy nominee as MVP honours also went to Ovechkin . In addition to Crosby ' s return to the lineup late in the regular season , the Penguins acquired star winger Marian Hossa from the Atlanta Thrashers at the trade deadline , placing the club in a strong position to make a deep playoff run . Pittsburgh finished the regular season as Atlantic Division champions and just two points shy of the first - seeded Montreal Canadiens . In a rematch of the previous year ' s opening round , the Penguins began the 2008 playoffs facing the Ottawa Senators , whom they quickly swept in four games . After then defeating the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers , each in five games , the Penguins reached the final round for the first time since 1992 , to face the Detroit Red Wings . After being shutout as a team for the first two games of the series , Crosby scored the first two goals of game three as the series shifted to Pittsburgh to fuel a 3 – 2 win . The Penguins , however , lost the next game and despite staving off defeat in game five , they were overcome by the Red Wings in six games . Crosby finished the playoffs with 27 points ( 6g , 21a in 20 games ) , tying Conn Smythe - winner Henrik Zetterberg ( 13g , 14a in 22 games ) for the playoff scoring lead . 2008 – 09 . Early in the following season , on October 18 , 2008 , Crosby scored one goal and three assists to surpass benchmarks of 100 goals , 200 assists , and 300 points for his career . On the scoring play in which Crosby scored , teammate Malkin assisted to record his own 200th point . As a result , Crosby had a team trainer cut the puck in half so both players could commemorate the achievement . Minor injury troubles kept Crosby from five games early in the season as he was listed day - to - day , but he was , for the most part , able to bounce back from the previous injury - riddled season and stay healthy . He recorded 33 goals and 70 assists to finish third in league scoring , as Evgeni Malkin captured his first career Art Ross Trophy . Entering the 2009 playoffs as the defending Prince of Wales Trophy winners , the Penguins defeated the Philadelphia Flyers in the opening round before meeting the Washington Capitals for a highly publicized second - round matchup . The series was heavily followed as it pitted Ovechkin of the Capitals against both Crosby and Malkin , who together finished as the league ' s top three scorers that season . In the second game , Crosby and Ovechkin recorded matching three - goal efforts for their first career playoff hat tricks in a 4 – 3 losing cause for the Penguins . Despite being down 2 – 0 in the series , Crosby and the Penguins took the next three games and eventually defeated the Capitals in a seventh and deciding game , in which Crosby added another two goals . Following a sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final , Crosby opted against recent NHL tradition and picked up the Prince of Wales Trophy , which he had left untouched the previous year . In explanation of the change of heart , Crosby said , " We didn ' t touch the trophy last year , and obviously we didn ' t have the result we wanted . . . Although we haven ' t accomplished exactly what we want . . . we can still enjoy it . " Meeting the Detroit Red Wings for the second straight year in the Finals , Crosby won his first Stanley Cup with the Penguins in seven games . At 21 years , 10 months , and 5 days , Crosby became the youngest NHL captain to hoist the Cup . ( The youngest captain to lead his team to the Stanley Cup in the history of the trophy is Mike Grant of the 1895 Montreal Victorias , who was 21 years and 2 months at the time . ) In the deciding game seven , Crosby was forced to watch all but 32 seconds of the third period from the bench after suffering a knee injury less than halfway through the second period due to a hit from Johan Franzen . Following the game , Crosby was criticized by Detroit forward Kris Draper for neglecting to shake hands with some of Detroit ' s players , most notably captain Nicklas Lidstrom . An irate Draper was quoted as saying " Nick was waiting and waiting , and Crosby didn ' t come over to shake his hand . That ' s ridiculous , especially as their captain . " Crosby replied afterward , saying , " 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 . " 2009 - 2010 . In the 2009 – 10 NHL season , Crosby tied Tampa Bay Lightning center Steven Stamkos for the lead in goals scored , with 51 goals , earning the Rocket Richard Trophy . He also garnered 58 assists for a total of 109 points , good enough to tie with Alex Ovechkin for second in league points , trailing only the Vancouver Canucks ' Daniel Sedin ' s 112 . Additionally , Crosby won the Mark Messier Leadership Award , getting recognized as a ' superior leader within the sport , setting a positive example through on - ice performance , motivation of team members and a dedication to the community ' . This was the second time he had received this honor , the other being in January of 2007 , during the award ' s first year when it was presented monthly . Crosby ' s Penguins were defeated in the second round of the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs , losing to the Montreal Canadiens in seven games . Crosby had 19 points in 13 games in the playoffs , though through seven games against the Canadiens he had only 1 goal and 4 assists for a total of 5 points . This was due in part to the fact that the Canadiens placed extra defense on him during the whole series , and also in part to Jaroslav Halak ' s solid play . International play . Crosby debuted internationally for Team Canada at the 2003 U - 18 Junior World Cup in the Czech Republic and Slovakia . He was the youngest player on the under - 18 team , having turned 16 shortly before the beginning of the tournament . After seven consecutive gold medals at the tournament , Team Canada lost in the bronze medal game to the Czech Republic 8 – 2 . Crosby scored four goals and six points over five tournament games . Crosby went on to compete in two World Junior Championships with Team Canada ' s under - 20 team . As a sixteen - year - old , he was selected to compete in the 2004 World Junior Championships in Helsinki . He became the youngest player to score a goal in the history of the tournament at 16 years , 4 months , and 21 days when he scored against Switzerland in a 7 – 2 win . Crosby finished the tournament with 2 goals and 3 assists in 6 games , helping Canada to a silver medal finish . The following year , he returned for Team Canada at the 2005 World Junior Championships in Grand Forks . He improved to 6 goals and 3 assists as Canada earned gold . After completing his rookie season with the Pittsburgh Penguins , Crosby competed in the 2006 World Championships as an alternate captain for Team Canada . Tallying a tournament - best 8 goals and 8 assists in 9 games , he became the youngest player ever to win a World Championship scoring title . Despite his performance , Canada failed to medal , being shutout by Finland 5 – 0 in the bronze medal game . Crosby was named the tournament ' s top forward and to the competition ' s all - star team . After having been left off the Olympic team in 2006 , Crosby was named to Team Canada on December 30 , 2009 , as an alternate captain for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver . He scored the game - winning shootout goal for Canada in the second game of the preliminary round against Switzerland . After going pointless in the quarter - and semi - final against Russia and Slovakia , respectively , Crosby scored the gold medal winning goal in overtime against the United States . After the gold medal game , it was announced that Crosby ' s stick and glove were missing . It was suspected that they might have been taken by someone else . Reebok Canada had offered a reward of CAD $ 10 , 000 for their return — no questions asked . On March 10 , the items were found ; Crosby ' s stick had been placed in a shipment bound for the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame in St . Petersburg , Russia ( the shipment was intercepted in Toronto ) and his glove was found in a hockey bag belonging to Patrice Bergeron whose stall was beside Crosby ' s in the locker room for the 2010 Olympics . Following the Penguins ' second - round elimination in the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs , Crosby declined an invitation to join Team Canada midway through the 2010 IIHF World Championship in Germany . Jerseys . Crosby ' s 87 Pittsburgh Penguins jersey was the top seller on the NHL ' s website from September 2005 to February 2008 . In January 2005 , an Air Canada baggage handler in Montreal stole Crosby ' s red Canada jersey from the World Junior Hockey Championship . It was recovered later in a mailbox . His white jersey from the tournament was temporarily delisted from an auction while the red one was missing . It eventually sold for $ 22 , 100 , which went to youth hockey charities and 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake relief . Less than a year later , one of Crosby ' s game - worn sweaters went missing . The jersey he wore in his first NHL game , played against the New Jersey Devils , went missing from his father ' s luggage during a flight from Pittsburgh to Buffalo . The jersey was later found at the Pittsburgh International Airport between a piece of equipment and a stairwell . Crosby ' s jersey from his third NHL game was the highest - selling NHL jersey in an auction for Hurricane Katrina relief – it sold for $ 21 , 010 . During an online auction held by the NHL and the NHL Players Association to benefit Hockey Fights Cancer , Crosby ' s game - worn jersey from the first period of the 2007 All - Star Game earned the most money . Crosby ' s sold for $ 47 , 520 , more than eight times the next highest price — $ 5 , 681 for the jersey worn by Brendan Shanahan of the New York Rangers . Personal life . Sidney Crosby was born in Halifax , Nova Scotia , in 1987 to Troy Crosby and Trina Forbes - Crosby though he grew up in nearby Cole Harbour . He has a younger sister , Taylor . Crosby lived with the Lemieux family in Sewickley , Pennsylvania from 2005 until 2010 . In the spring of 2010 , Crosby purchased his own home in the same area . In the summer of 2006 he bought his first house in Halifax , Nova Scotia . His father was a goaltender who played for the Verdun Junior Canadiens in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and in the 1985 Memorial Cup . Troy was drafted 240th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in 1984 , but never played at the NHL level . Growing up , Sidney admired Steve Yzerman and , like his father , was a fan of the Montreal Canadiens . Crosby ' s number ( 87 ) and 2007 contract signing ( $ 8 . 7 million per year ) reflect his birthdate ( 8 / 7 / 87 ) . From age twelve to fifteen , Crosby attended Astral Drive Junior High School . He was a straight - A student and , according to the vice - principal , " an amazing role model who was really kind to students in the learning centre and to special needs kids . " When he was fifteen , Crosby transferred to Shattuck - Saint Mary ' s in Faribault , Minnesota . Crosby then graduated from Harrison Trimble High School , in Moncton , New Brunswick in 2005 . In time for Crosby ' s first season , Gare Joyce issued a biography , " Sidney Crosby : Taking the Game by Storm " . The November 2005 edition of " GQ Magazine " featured him in a series of shirt - less photos . In 2007 , Crosby was nominated for " Time Magazine " ' s 100 Most Influential People list . Crosby holds an endorsement deal with Reebok and designed a fashion line in 2007 . On May 29 , 2010 , it was announced that Sidney Crosby will sign the richest endorsement deal in National Hockey League history with Reebok . The deal is expected to pay Crosby $ 1 . 4 million a year for five to seven years . Crosby also has endorsement deals with Bell Canada , Tim Hortons and Gatorade . In 2008 , Crosby appeared in the documentary film " Pond Hockey " , where he discusses his experiences of playing pond hockey .