Sidney Crosby is arguably the best player on the ice on any given night. Of course when you’re great, you are going to have some haters out there that pounce on any weakness that you have. The most common knocks against Sid are that he’s not physical enough, he passes too much and is not a true goal scorer. . .  more of a play maker, and he isn’t good at faceoffs. Well, I think he must of been listening, because he has improved this year on at least two of the three knocks.

When Sid won the Art Ross trophy in 2006-2007, he had 120 points, with 36 goals. This year he is on pace to have over 50 goals. Whether he’s scoring the goal or setting up the goal, the bottom line is that when Sid’s on the ice, he’s generating offense. Last year he was right around 50% on face offs. This year he is around 57%, which is a big improvement. Winning the faceoff gives your team a great advantage especially if you are in your own zone. It’s these little things that add up and make Sid an even better player. As for the physical part of it, I don’t really care how many hits he has. He’s on the ice to score goals, we have enough other players to make hits. As important as being physical is for any team, it doesn’t matter if you’re not scoring goals, just ask Philadelphia.

There are few that are able to do both, with Alex Ovechkin probably being the best. He can score a goal on one shift and do his best to cripple someone on the next. Of course, we can call him a dirty player, which he has been called many times. The truth is though, if he played for us we would love him. Just look at Hines Ward for proof.

So is Sid the best player on the ice? I think so, but I’m from Pittsburgh and may be a little biased. If you were starting a team and you can pick anyone to build your team around, would Sid be your first pick? Well, assuming that you weren’t going to start off with a franchise goaltender, (Marc-Andre Fleury), you would have to have Crosby at the top of your list. He’s not only great on the ice, he’s also a great captain with leadership ability beyond his young age. Don’t be a hater, you know I’m right!