Tonight will change that, and the man who scored the Golden Goal in the 2010 Olympics to give Canada the gold medal in the olympics over the USA will finally get the chance to play in this Canadian town. So, what should he expect?
From our buddies at Arctic Ice Hockey, they might have some conflicting feelings about how to handle the chance to see #87 in an opposing jersey.
We've all seen how Jets' fans have treated the opposing stars of the NHL. Alex Ovechkin. Steven Stamkos. Eric Staal. Each of them have been booed and taunted until our throats are raw and hoarse. But something is different about Crosby and the Penguins which leads me to believe the MTSC faithful will go easy on Sid the KidOn June 12, 2009 I was in-house watching the Hershey Bears put the final touches on back-to-back Calder Cup Championships against the Manitoba Moose. As the third period was drawing to a close, things looked dire for the Moose as they trailed by a score of 3-1. With roughly five minutes remaining in the game, public address announcer Jay Richardson took to the mic to announce the Pittsburgh Penguins had just won the Stanley Cup, as Game 7 of the Finals took place that night in Detroit, MI.
I was in awe of the response: the 15,004 in attendance turned on a heel from stone silence to raucous celebration.
You see, Winnipeg seems to have adopted rooting interests in the Pittsburgh Penguins during their 15-year absence from the NHL. And you'd be crazy if you think that number 87 didn't have something to do with this mass conversion. For the casual fan, what's better than watching arguably the greatest player of our era captivate our imaginations night in and night out.
Crosby may have been a fan favorite back then, but tonight with the hometown Jets in Crosby's sights, the reaction might be different. Even if the crowd is excited to see Sid in person, they're probably not going to be happy if he creates offense against their team.