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Sidney Crosby No Longer NHL’s Best Player

By Diana Driscoll|

Is Sidney Crosby still the NHL’s best player? This has been a question circulating in recent days and one that ESPN Insider’s Rob Vollman took a stab at answering.

I have to agree with the consensus. Of course, I am not a Pittsburgh Penguins fan, so I have never believed the sun rises and sets with Crosby. I am also an American, so his Gold medal-winning goal in the 2010 Winter Olympics against the United States still stings (I think it always will—it could have been anybody else! But nooooo Crosby had to come away the hero).

I can’t say he’s not talented. I wouldn’t have hated him so much in his earlier years if he wasn’t good (my hatred has soften to just a general dislike—mostly because I believe he whines too much). He’s got unbelievable hands, is a great passer and led his team to the Stanley Cup in 2009 when he became the youngest NHL captain to win a Stanley Cup championship since 1895.

Per Rob Vollman of ESPN Insider:

"Crosby was still a teenager when the notion that he was the league’s best hockey player first took root, back in 2006-07. That’s the first year he won the scoring race and was named the league’s most valuable player by both the professional hockey writers association, who award the Hart trophy, and his fellow players, who award the Pearson. That reign lasted at least eight years, as he earned all the same distinctions once again at the end of the 2013-14 season. During that time, he was won the Stanley Cup, two Olympic gold medals and averaged 1.42 points per game — way in front of teammate Evgeni Malkin in second place with 1.22."

Crosby has been the face of the NHL. He is a great ambassador for the game and is still one of the most dangerous players on the ice. And as Vollman pointed out, he’s got a ridiculous amount of hardware. In addition to those listed above, Crosby has won two Hart trophies, two Art Ross trophies, three Ted Lindsay awards, one Maurice “Rocket” Richard trophy, and one Mark Messier Leadership award.

You don’t get all those accolades if you aren’t talented or deserving.

However, I do not believe he is still the best in the game. I think a lot of people may still believe this because they are fans or because of the perception the NHL and the media create about him. He has this aura of an untouchable, elite player—but it’s more a figment of our imagination than anything else.

People continue to see him as the best, so nobody questions it when others claim he is in fact the best player in the NHL. Well, finally, after 10 seasons in the League the perception of Crosby is starting to change and that has to do with the emergence of other elite players.

"Chicago’s Jonathan Toews could make a case. He has long been considered one of the game’s best two-way players (he was named the best defensive forward in 2012-13 and has been a finalist in four of the past five seasons) and has been the captain of three championship teams: 2010, 2013 and 2015. That first championship run saw him named the most valuable player of playoffs.Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos is arguably the league’s second-best scorer after Ovechkin and led his team to the Cup Finals this year. But so far that hasn’t translated to wide-spread acclaim.One of the young blue liners like two-time Norris winner Erik Karlsson of Ottawa or Montreal’s P.K. Subban could make a case with their offensive contributions in addition to their defensive prowess, but they are long shots. As is Rangers’ netminder Henrik Lundqvist, who has been named as the league’s best goaltender once (2011-12) despite being in the top five of ballots in four of the last five year. [Neil Greenberg, The Washington Post]"

All of these players listed above are outstanding. Each brings something different to the League and his respective team. These guys have won scoring titles, have won awards, and have won Olympic medals and some Cups.

For me, Toews may take the title. When I think of the best, I don’t just think about championships or individuals stats, even though those things make legends (Wayne Gretzky, Michael Jordan). But I also look at character and other intangibles that aren’t really calculated when discussing the overall value of a player.

First off, Toews was the leader of three championship teams—all in a matter of six years. Yes, he didn’t win the Cups alone, but I have to believe that his leadership played a part in the team’s emergence.

It isn’t just that. Toews is also one of the best, if not the best, two-way player; he does it all. Players like Toews, the ones that play at both ends of the ice, should get more credit. In hockey you can’t win without scoring and you can’t win without playing defense. Toews does both of these things. He helps his team on the penalty kill and will lead them on the power play. He is also responsible for shutting down players, and he does this well.

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Anything you throw at Toews he seems to be able to handle. Aside from his overall play, Toews also has some serious hardware, and has recorded more points that Crosby in the Olympics (that has to mean something). Adding all of this together, I think Toews comes out on top.

There are so many things that go into being the best, so many will argue that some of Crosby’s stats are better than Toews (like total points in the NHL) and vice versa. But for me Toews is the man of the decade. He has become a champion and a leader in this league, and I believe it is time people start seeing him as such.

Toews has never been touted as the League’s best, but he is rightfully earning the title.

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