The REAL Crosby...

I couldn't resist, Martin Biron says it best, Sidney Crosby is a LIAR and a WHINER.



You rock Marty, man, Sabres fans must really miss you!

--BBR

Crosby signs 5-year contract extension

UPDATED 10:49 AM:
This is now official, as reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

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The Penguins have signed center Sidney Crosby to a five-year contract extension. The deal is worth $43 million, an annual salary-cap hit of $8.7 million.

It will take effect in the 2008-09 season.

"Sidney has proven himself to be a dynamic player and team leader at a very young age, and it is exciting news for our franchise and our fans to have him under contract for the next six seasons, through 2013," said Fred Shero, the Penguins executive vice president and general manager.

"When you've got a guy who leads the league in scoring and wins the MVP award at the age of 19, you know have someone very special. But Sid also is a tremendous asset for this organization as a leader in the dressing room, and as the face of our franchise in the community. And the fact that he wants to be here long-term is a great statement about the city of Pittsburgh and our organization," Shero said.

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According to the ever-famous anonymous hockey blogger, Eklund, over at HockeyBuzz.com, the Pittsburgh Penguins have agreed to a 5-year contract extension with young phenomenon Sidney Crosby estimated to be worth in the neighbourhood of $45 million, or, $9 million per season.

"Sid The Kid" became the youngest player ever to win a scoring title last year by scoring 36 goals and adding 84 assists to capture the Art Ross, the Hart, the Pearson and on top of it all, being part of the Eastern Conference's First All-Star team.

CROSBY FIVE YEAR EXTENSION AGREED TO
I just spoke to Brian Metzer who will be posting shortly, but he is hearing that the the deal is somewhere in the neighborhood of 5 years, 45 million.

Brian will be posting a blog shortly in "Blogging the NHL."

A source confirmed to me that the Penguins have agreed to a five year extension in the neighborhood of 9 per season, and since Sid is still under contract for the upcoming season that means 6 more years of Sid in steeltown.

Great work as always by Brian.

There's absolutely no way Crosby would have made anything less than that ghastly big amount the Penguins just handed him, if anything, he made less than what some teams would be willing to give him should he have hit the open market someday.
I know this IS Crosby we're talking about, the next "Great One" crap and all, but seriously, how much longer is this "new NHL" going to go on if top-talent players keep commanding this kind of amount?

And what about next year? Dany Heatley and Patrick Marleau will both likely break the bank should they hit unrestricted free-agency, and where does that leave the rest of those second-tier quality players?

It leaves them salivating with the idea of applying a hefty price tag to any team that wants to pick him up, with the top talent gone, basically raising the market price to a whole new level the NHL SHOULD NOT be going into.

Let's imagine this is a decent forward with many available options and teams seeking him speaking:

"Hey, Heatley just signed a 7-year/$60 million deal! That makes other teams who lost out on him come to me!
Hehe, with that kind of attention shift, I can really ask for more money now that they'd be willing to bring someone in like me since they totally failed to get Heatley!
KACHING!
I'll be seeing green for the rest of my life, and who cares where I end up now as long as they give me the $$$$$$"

I wonder why we had this lockout in the first place and why fans like you and I spent an entire year lamenting the loss of hockey only to be treacherously close to falling back into that hole we all thought the NHL climbed out of two years ago.

And I shiver to think that so many players have "Decent forward"'s mentality as mentioned in my make-believe quote above.

$$$$$$

--BBR

Crosby to be named Captain

I will have more information about this when it actually happens but for now it looks like he will be named Captain today. You can read the article here.

UPDATE I was reading at Mirtle's blog...and he was saying that the reason they are doing it now is so that Crosby can break another record by becoming the youngest Captain ever in the NHL. I think it's a little ridiuclous to be perfectly honest. I believe Crosby is a great player...he has a TON of skills BUT when it comes to his leadership...I have doubts. Maybe, if I wouldn't have seen him cry, and whine to the refs after every bad call...I would change my mind. The fact of the matter is this is a mans game and Crosby is still...a boy...disagree with me if you want...but it's the truth.

Article Here

Jocelyn Thibault looks to revive dead career...

A few weeks ago, while the Penguins were riding high on a somewhat unbeatable streak and rose from "scrub" to "contender", goaltender Jocelyn Thibault publicly admited he would like more playing time behind former first overall pick, Marc-Andre Fleury.

After a terrific month of January in which Fleury showed why he was a first overall pick, he went 7-1 with a 2.05 GAA and a .932 SPCT% to go along with 2 shutouts in that span, Fleury's play has gone from outstanding to mediocre.

Despite posting a 7-2 win-loss record in the month of February, Fleury's save percentage was a paltry .888 and his GAA floated around 3.22 during that month and he only managed to win games due to the emergence of Pittsburgh's offence, centered mainly around Sidney Crosby.

Most fans brushed this month off, claiming fatigue to be a factor as Fleury played in 10 games while Thibault only 3. His bad streak has not left him yet and he is still posting mediocre numbers in this month of March with nearly the same as the previous month with a 3.17 GAA and a .889 SPCT%, a miniscule improvement.

Despite his wins, head coach Michel Therrien did not leave these struggles go unnoticed by reacting with Jocelyn Thibault getting the nod against two powerhouses: the Ottawa Senators last week and the New Jersey Devils yesterday.
He has not dissapointed and that can be proven by looking at the final score of yesterday's Devils-Penguins game: 3-0 Pittsburgh...his first shutout of the season.

Although this is kind of premature: Thibault's numbers for the current month of play are impressive, maybe surprising considering he's fallen to a no. 2 goalie status.

3 GP, 2 W, 1 L , 1.46 GAA, .932 SCPT%, 1 SO
Before All-Star: 1-5, 3.42 GAA, .895 SPCT%
After All-Star: 5-2, 1.94 GAA, .929 SPCT%

This is Thibault's chance...with Fleury floundering he brings a lot to the table that the young netminder doesn't: experience.

He better not screw this up...

2 Games, 2 Nights - 4 Points

Hello loyal BBR readers! This is my first post here as a contributor to the site, so I'd like to thank Mr. Blue, Blanc et Rouge himself for the invite.

I'm all about the Habs, so you can expect most of my entries to be Montreal Canadiens related.

Any who, let's get to this.
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The Habs have a big weekend ahead of them with two games in two nights against the Penguins in Pittsburgh on Friday and the Leafs in Montreal on St. Patty’s day. Needless to say, the Habs have to pick up at least 3 of 4 points before Sunday's parade.

Furthermore, Montreal cannot afford to lose to the Leafs, let alone give them a point in overtime or shootout. In order to keep their playoff hopes alive, Les Habitants will certainly need to pick up at least a point versus Sid the Kid and beat Toronto in regulation.

The league's leader in points, Sidney Crosby, with 104 in 67 games, has a chance to add to his point totals against the Habs Friday night. The 19-year-old from Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia has six assists in three games against Montreal this season, and 12 points in seven games since he began his NHL career last season.

Now, everyone remembers what Crosby did to Montreal, erm, Jose Theodore the first time he played against them, right? Let me remind you: The game was tied after five minutes of 5-on-5 overtime and Crosby had the opportunity to win the game on his shot in the shootout on home ice. If you still don't remember the fantastic move he put on Jose, here's the clip thanks the YouTube. I can watch it with ease by reminding myself that right now, Theo is warming the bench in Colorado.


Some bad news for the Habs heading into the game against Pittsburgh, though, is that they will be without the services of their biggest center, Radek Bonk. Bonk has been instrumental in shutting down the leagues best players for Montreal this season, but didn't make the trip to Pittsburgh thanks to the flu. Without their defensive center in the lineup, Carbonneau will certainly have his hands full trying to find combinations to contain Crosby and friends.

Moving on to Toronto now, the Habs will hope to have Bonk back in the lineup in order to help shut down Mats Sundin. Sundin has been on a tear and is a large reason why the Leafs are getting a sniff at a playoff spot right now. One thing is for sure, the team will need a great effort from Koivu if they're going to win.

It is uncertain, too, whether or not Alex Kovalev will be good to go on Saturday after being diagnosed with Vertigo. The talented winger has trouble keeping balance when he turns his head and it's nearly impossible to predict when, or if, the problem will go away.

The next two games are extremely crucial; losing both would all but crush the Habs' chances of making the post-season dance.

Currently sitting at 11th place in the Eastern Conference, the Canadiens sit two points back from both the New York Islanders (7th) and the Carolina Hurricanes (8th). The problem for Montreal lays in their games played. Montreal has played more games than all the teams they're currently fighting for a playoff spot with, minus the Hurricanes.

Still, Montreal has a chance at controlling their own destiny if you consider that they play two games against both the Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Rangers. Win those games and not only does Montreal pick up 8 points, but that's 4 points both the Leafs and Rangers won't have (if they lose in regulation). I know, it's all much easier said than done, but Montreal has proved that when they play their best, they can skate with anyone in the league and win.

Another interesting little tid-bit is that Montreal will renew their rivalry with the Boston Bruins. Of their 11 remaining games, the Habs face the Bruins three times. While the Canadiens will see the games as a chance to gain ground on the final playoff spots, the Bruins will see them as a chance to bring themselves closer to the pack. Boston is seven points back from eighth place, but they hold two games in hand on both the Hurricanes and the Habs.

Until next time, take it easy & Go Habs Go!

Summit Series '08?

There isn't much info available, but a russian newspaper "Sport Express" is reporting that in the autumn of 2008, Canada and Russia could possibly match up for a kind of "Summit Series".

It is rumoured to be discussed next week during a meeting with the IIHF with Hockey Canada leader Bob Nicholson.

Apparently, this series would help celebrate the 100th of the International Ice Hockey Federation.


Unlike the 1972 Summit Series, the '08 Series would begin in Russia and end in Canada.

However, "Sport Expres" also mentioned a potential deal breaker since the the NHL is in a difficult position with the Russian Hockey Federation on the topic of players coming to North America.

Can we possibly see a Sidney Crosby versus Alexander Ovechkin matchup? Something that will remind fans of Phil Esposito and Valery Kharlamov back in '72.


Bleu, Blanc et Rouge.