Battle of Generational Talents

Just like the rest of the hockey world, Sidney Crosby watched Connor McDavid dangle through four New York Rangers players to score an epic highlight-reel goal a few weeks back with admiration for how he makes difficult plays look so easy.

"Obviously you don't want to be on the other side of that if you're on the ice, but I think you have a certain level of appreciation, and that's fun to see," Crosby said following Penguins practice on Tuesday at Rogers Place ahead of their matchup with McDavid's Oilers on Wednesday. "It's great for the game, and it's great to see someone at that level doing what he's doing."
And speaking of McDavid's level - Crosby said what impresses him the most is how the 24-year-old superstar keeps taking his game to another one, as he's been producing at an exponentially astronomical rate since entering the league in 2015 while coming up with unbelievable sequences like that one against the Blueshirts.
"I think when somebody's playing at the level he's at, it's hard to think that they can again find another level, and I think he's done that," Crosby said.
While they are both very different players - with McDavid's game predicated on his unparalleled speed, while Crosby is "a blue-collar superstar" as general manager Ron Hextall called him - they've actually produced very similar numbers through the first 427 regular season games of their respective careers. Crosby racked up 219 goals, 378 assists and 597 points over that span, while McDavid has 209 goals, 410 assists and 610 points heading into his 428th career game.
Crosby, 34, has gone on to play in hundreds more contests since then, entering his 1,050th game tonight. What stands out the most to McDavid is how Crosby's game has evolved over the years.
"I think Sid has changed his game since he's been in the league," McDavid said following Edmonton's morning skate on Wednesday.
"I think he came in as a pass-first guy and wanted to get better at faceoffs, and now look at him, he's a great faceoff guy. He wanted to score more goals and he's a 50-goal scorer and a Rocket Richard winner. He's kind of changed his game as he's gone along, and that's so impressive in itself. And obviously he's won everything there is to win. One of the best to ever do it in our sport, so it's always a good challenge."
McDavid has yet to capture a Stanley Cup or Olympic gold, the latter of which he is hoping to win as Crosby's teammate at the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing. They and Alex Pietrangelo were the first three names submitted to be part of the Canada men's hockey team.
"It'd be so exciting," McDavid said of the chance to play with Crosby. "To play with any of those Canadian guys, there's a deep group of players to pick from. And just getting the opportunity to represent my country and play with some of the best players in the world, obviously Sid's right up there at the top. It's a huge honor and something I certainly look forward to."
But for now, the generational talents will be going head-to-head for the eighth time in their careers tonight, and while McDavid has the edge in points - 10 to four - Crosby and the Penguins are a perfect 7-0-0 dating back to their first matchup on Nov. 8, 2016. Six of the seven games have been one-goal contests and four have required overtime.
It's a matchup that Crosby is looking forward to, especially since it's been a while since the teams have played, with the last meeting coming back on Dec. 20, 2019.
"I think the part of loving to compete and the part that you enjoy about the game is the challenges every night," Crosby said. "Obviously, Connor is one of the biggest. At the same time, though, it's fun. That's why you play."
It would be one thing if the Penguins only had to worry about neutralizing McDavid, but they have the other Oilers superstar Leon Draisaitl to contend with as well. They're the most dynamic offensive duo in the NHL, with McDavid being named league MVP last season and Draisaitl earning that distinction the year before.
Draisaitl, 26, currently leads the league with absolutely staggering numbers, posting 20 goals and 40 points in 20 games. Meanwhile, McDavid ranks first with 22 assists and third with 36 points, and started the season on a 17-game point streak.
"Their numbers speak for themselves," Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said. "We're going to have to do our very best at recognizing when they're on the ice, we're going to have to try and make it a hard game for them. We're going to have to force them to play 200 feet."
Sullivan went on to say for as much as they have to respect elite players like McDavid and Draisaitl, the Penguins also have to make sure they're sticking to the identity that gives them the best chance to be successful regardless of who their opponent is.
A big part of that is controlling territory, possessing the puck and making teams expend energy defending them.
"We've had stretches during the course of this first part of our season where we've been very good at that, and we're able to control games and manage games that way, and then there's been others where we've gotten away from it," Sullivan said. "Last night (a 2-1 shootout loss to Calgary) was a perfect example. We're going to have to do our best to dictate the terms out there. But we also recognize that it's a huge challenge against these guys."