Revisiting the best Tweet of the Sidney Crosby era

Ah, Rivalry Week. A time to reminisce on how much the Philadelphia Flyers suck. These jabs are all in good fun, of course. Most of the time.

Today, we’re going to re-examine the tweet that has defined a generation... and became a meme in the process.

I’m talking about when Sidney Crosby passed the baton.

In a since-deleted tweet from Flyers reporter Sam Carchidi during the 2012 playoff series between the Flyers and Penguins, he proclaimed that Philadelphia star Claude Giroux had surpassed Sidney Crosby in terms of being the NHL’s best player.

The Retweet count from this screenshot was only 600 people off from 1,975. A shame, really.

While the Penguins would lose that series to Philadelphia in 2012, they would avenge it in the next matchup in 2018, a first round series that saw Pittsburgh win their ninth straight playoff series. Meanwhile, Crosby’s individual and team accolades would continue to increase as the years went on.

Since 2012, Crosby has won: two Stanley Cups (2016 & 2017), two Conn Smythe Trophies (2016 & 2017), two Ted Lindsay Awards (2013 & 2014), a second Hart Memorial Trophy in 2014, a second Art Ross Trophy in 2014, and a second Maurice Richard Trophy during the 2016-2017 campaign. Throw in captaining Canada to a second Olympic gold medal from the 2014 Sochi Olympics and being an MVP while captaining Canada to a gold medal in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey for good measure.

On the other hand, the Flyers have failed to win a playoff series since they bested the Pens in 2012. But at least Giroux was the cover athlete of NHL 13!