Sidney Crosby, right, acknowledges the crowd next to teammate Sergei Gonchar as they are introduced as Olympians before the start of the game against Buffalo Tuesday night. - Matt Freed – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Penguins' superstar Crosby sets his sights on another Cup
By Shelly Anderson
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
March 3, 2010

Call them souvenirs lost.

When Sidney Crosby scored for Canada against the United States in overtime of the Olympic hockey final Sunday in Vancouver, he swooped behind the net, reached for his mouth guard, then threw that, his gloves and his stick to the heavens.

"When they cleared the ice, I never got my stick or gloves," Mr. Crosby said Tuesday after rejoining his Penguins teammates. "Of all the things, I got my mouth guard back. I don't know where [the other equipment] is. It's one of those things that I don't know how it got away or where it ended up. If I get it back one day, great. If not, someone's got it somewhere."

Other than the molded plastic mouth guard, Mr. Crosby didn't exactly come back empty-handed.

There was that gold medal, the most recent symbol of his latest larger-than-life accomplishment.

Mr. Crosby, who became the youngest NHL captain to lift the Stanley Cup last summer, brought his gold medal to Mellon Arena Tuesday morning to show the Penguins as they gathered for their morning skate.

Asked what could possibly be next after winning a Cup and a gold before his 23rd birthday, Mr. Crosby thought for a second, shrugged slightly and said softly, "Another one."

Whether he will aim for another gold medal in the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, is in question -- not because he has any hesitation in playing for Team Canada again, but because the NHL has not committed to continued cooperation with the Olympics.

Mr. Crosby wouldn't go as far as some of the Russian NHL players in vowing to participate in 2014, even if that means defying the league or his pro team.

"I'd love to be there," he said. "You look at the experience I had, everybody had. It was an amazing event. It was great for hockey. The fact that it was Canada-U.S. was awesome. It was watched everywhere. I think all hockey fans in general enjoyed it.

"I can't see them not going. I really don't know what's going to happen, but, after what we experienced and I think what the fans experienced, I don't see any reason why we wouldn't go."

Success seems to follow Mr. Crosby, but he's not sure that's how he wants people to view him. Nevertheless, he's not complaining about the results.

"You want to be a winner, for sure," he said. "I think there are other things that define people besides championships. But, as a player, that's what you play for. That's what you work toward. You put everything you can into working hard so you can have those opportunities."

The next opportunity would be to help the Penguins attempt to repeat as Stanley Cup champions. That march began quickly on the heels of the Olympics, with a home game Tuesday night against Buffalo.

That means Mr. Crosby and other NHL players who had long runs in the Olympics have little time to put that tournament into perspective.

"The whole experience was great," said Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik, who was on the losing end of that 3-2 game Sunday and earned a silver medal. "Obviously, not the outcome we wanted. We get going here in Pittsburgh right away, so it probably won't happen until after the season when the dust settles that I think about it."

They got a rousing reminder when the Penguins honored the Olympians from both teams before the game last night. For the Penguins, that included Mr. Crosby, Mr. Orpik, goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who was the third-string goaltender for Canada, and Russia's Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar, along with Buffalo goaltender Ryan Miller (U.S.), coach Lindy Ruff (Canadian assistant), Henrik Tallinder (Sweden), Toni Lydman (Finland, bronze medal), Andrej Sekera (Slovakia) and Jochen Hecht (Germany).

The only smudge was a smattering of boos mixed with cheers when a clip of Mr. Crosby scoring to beat the U.S. was shown on the video board.

Mr. Miller, the Olympic tournament MVP, got one of the loudest ovations for a visiting player you would ever hear, and, at the end of the introductions, there was a short chant of "USA, USA" from the crowd.

"That would be a first," Mr. Miller said earlier in the day when asked about the possibility of a warm reception. "I usually hear my name in other ways.

"It is nice that the Olympics can help bring that out in the crowds here in the NHL because, especially out on the East Coast, you hear [taunting] a lot, and up in Canada, they like to give you a hard time. It would be nice to have a crowd appreciate your effort when you're on the road.

"But I think that's what's good about hockey fans-- they enjoy a good hockey game. It's not just about one team all the time. It's about the sport. It's nice that the U.S. really tuned in for it."

Mr. Ruff took more notice of what the quality of play in the Olympics said about the NHL, which supplied all the players for the gold-medal game.

"The two-week experience -- the hockey that was played, how great the games were, how exciting it turned out, how tight the last game was -- it just tells what a tight league we have," he said. "You look at the U.S.-Canada matchup, there's not lot of difference there."

Mr. Ruff was one of the seemingly few people in North America who didn't watch the puck cross the goal line in overtime Sunday.

"I didn't see the goal live," he said. "I was getting ready to get two [defensemen] on the ice. It just all of a sudden was in. When I saw a pair of gloves go up, I knew he had scored, but I didn't really see the goal."

Maybe one day, Mr. Crosby will get those gloves back.

Pens fans salute Sabres goaltender Miller
By Rob Rossi
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
March 3, 2010

Ryan Miller sure is feeling the love from hockey fans despite not playing a game at Buffalo's HSBC Arena in almost three weeks.

A leading Vezina Trophy contender for the Buffalo Sabres and the MVP of the men's Olympic hockey tournament as Team USA goalie, Miller was saluted by a sellout crowd at Mellon Arena with a standing ovation prior to the game against the Penguins on Tuesday night.

"Usually I hear my name in other ways," he said. "It is nice that the Olympics can help bring that out of the crowds in the NHL because especially out on the East Coast you hear (jeers) a lot, and up in Canada they like to give you a hard time."

Miller gave Canada (twice) and three international other teams more than a hard time during the two-week Olympic tournament that concluded Sunday night in Vancouver with a heartbreaking 3-2 overtime loss to the Canadians.

Penguins center Sidney Crosby scored the winning goal in that contest, but Miller received a louder, longer ovation last night from Crosby's hometown NHL arena fans.

Miller allowed only seven goals during the Olympics, and his cumulative performance earned rave reviews from teammates, competitors, national fans and the international media — and a warm reception by Canadian fans at Hockey Canada Place after the gold-medal game.

"He was pretty unbelievable," Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik said of his Olympic teammate.

Miller, Orpik and Crosby were among several Olympians honored in a pregame ceremony last night. That group also included the following players: Marc-Andre Fleury (Canada), and Sergei Gonchar and Evgeni Malkin (Russia) of the Penguins; and Johan Hecht (Germany), Andrej Sekera (Slovakia), Henrik Tallinder (Sweden), and Toni Lydman (Finland) of the Sabres.

Also honored was Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff, an assistant for Canada.

Miller, whose stature on the national sports scene grew during the Olympics, did not play last night. He is expected to start for the Sabres against Washington at home tonight.

Like most returning Olympians, Miller appeared bleary-eyed yesterday following a grueling two-week tournament and a couple of cross-country flights.

He described himself as "a little spaced out" but not disappointed with how he played Crosby's winning goal.

"He made a smart play ... he just put his head up and knew where he wanted to go with (the shot)," he said. "I felt like I had to step out and maybe take some space away. I'd been aggressive the whole tournament. I wasn't going to lose by sitting in the net.”

Pittsburgh chalks up another sports win
City named No. 1 by Sporting News
Thursday, October 08, 2009
By Timothy McNulty, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

It took 16 years, but on-a-roll Pittsburgh has finally been named the No. 1 sports city by Sporting News magazine, beating out 398 other towns in the United States and Canada.

The city was so anointed largely on the backs of the dual 2009 Steelers and Penguins championships, but don't tell that to the former Luke Steelerstahl.

"I don't know how we don't win this every year," Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said at the announcement, held in his City-County Building conference room with Sporting News publisher Ed Baker.

The magazine's cover pairs Sidney Crosby and Ben Roethlisberger, and the 29-year-old mayor noted its resemblance to an iconic Sports Illustrated cover with Willie Stargell and Terry Bradshaw from 1979.

Times are a little bit better now, and the Sporting News designation gave Mr. Ravenstahl a chance to crow again about good publicity for the city. Keep in mind Mr. Ravenstahl is a sports nut who ceremoniously changed his name in January, walked a Super Bowl red carpet in Tampa and is in a charity fantasy football league with other mayors this fall.

"We are in many ways in the national and international spotlight right now because of the G-20 and the economic revitalization of this town. ... It's a great day for Pittsburgh and a great day for sports fans," Mr. Ravenstahl said.

Philadelphia was second in the magazine's ratings and Boston third. Last year Boston won the honor and in 2007, Detroit.

Mr. Baker said the selection incorporates the number of teams in each city (which hurts Pittsburgh, due to the lack of pro basketball), team won-lost records (where the Pirates hurt the ranking), and a lot of things that go in the city's favor, such as playoff records, attendance and fan ferocity.

"There's some science, some math and some subjectivity attached to it," Mr. Baker said.

The issue hits newsstands this week. It contains an eight-page spread on Pittsburgh sports, with stories on Western Pennsylvania quarterbacks, Pitt versus West Virginia, Steelers Super Bowl rings and tips from ex-Pirates on making the team a winner again.

"I think it's a great time to reflect on how lucky we are as Pittsburghers and how lucky we are to have the great fans we have, not only in the city of Pittsburgh but around the world. I hope our fans realize this is a great tribute to them as well," Steelers spokesman Dave Lockett said.

Penguins spokesman Tom McMillan -- wearing a giant Stanley Cup championship ring on his right hand -- noted that Penguins, Steelers and Pirates players routinely attend each other's games. "That is really unique. That doesn't happen in most cities," he said.

Pittsburgh has piled up similar awards to the Sporting News one lately -- Forbes said the Penguins were the fastest-growing brand in hockey this year, and last year's Turnkey Team Brand Index rated the Steelers third in overall brand loyalty after the Packers and Red Sox.

Mr. Baker, the magazine publisher, gave the mayor a Tiffany vase to mark the honor. Mr. Ravenstahl's ornate office already has a number of sports items in it, including a framed football jersey and Tiffany football given to late Mayor Bob O'Connor to mark the Steelers Super Bowl win in 2006.

The mayor -- who after the news conference talked to reporters about the city's perspective on the cash-strapped Carnegie Library system -- talked about the escape Pittsburgh's sports fandom supplies.

"People find comfort and unity in sports and it's an escape for them. ... On a Monday morning, you don't have to pick up the newspaper to know if the Steelers won or not. You just have to walk around town and get the sense of people. ... That really speaks volumes to the intensity of fans here and how much we interact with the teams," he said.

DETROIT - JUNE 12: Sidney Crosby #87 and the Pittsburgh Penguins celebrates with the Stanley Cup after defeating the Detroit Red Wings by a score of 2-1 to win Game Seven and the 2009 NHL Stanley Cup Finals at Joe Louis Arena on June 12, 2009 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)