NHL players rate Crosby 8th best

Face it, he is not well-liked in many other areas.  He is perceived as the spoiled superbrat who is often whining to the refs.

Nonetheless, he should turn his doubters into believers not only with his stellar all-around play so far in the playoffs as well as his focused, low-key approach to getting the job done. He is not doing any excessive celebrating and has cut down on the on-ice whining.  I'm sure he will be viewed much more favorably if he continues this

Sid is still being held to mistakes he made in his rookie season when he was only 18 years old. Did he whine and complain then? Yes. Do it too much? Probably. Was that 4 years ago? Ahh, yeah it was. Look at him this season. Does anyone see that now. Look good without your black and gold or red or orange or whatever glasses. He has been all business. 3rd in scoring regular season. 1st in playoffs. Captain. He is the best no matter what the other players say.

So Ovechkin is so much better. How many playoff series has he one. I admit he can shoot and give out questionable hits, but those are only two phases to the game. He plays no defense and is not a play maker. He was the first player (last year) to win a scoring title with more goals than assists. That only tells you he is a puck hog.

While Crosby should be among the top 3, this survey shows how much of a bubble we live in when it comes to our superstars.  Its been an open secret everywhere but Pittsburgh that Crosby was not held in high regard around the league.  The combination of being annointed as the league's top superstar when he was drafted (not his fault) and his immature on-ice behavior (guilty) contributed to this.  Blame the local media for the self-imposed news blackout on Sid's faults and for spending the past 4 years penning valentines to Sid instead of occasionally being objective and calling him on his shortcomings.

But, with that said, I agree with collegesportsfan;  at some point in the second half of this season (possibly the 2/22 game at Washington, where their fans really brutalized him?), Sid grew up and elevated his already excellent game.  He's been Lemiuex-esq in the playoffs and easily the MVP of the playoffs.  If the same players survey is taken this time next year, I expect Sid might just be #1.

Kind of tough to say that he's never had the respect from the rest of the league when his peers voted him as MVP just two years ago.  I think these playoffs will go a long way in restoring him to that type of esteem. I'm not really sure how he lost it, considering that everyone has said that he has continually matured over the last couple of years.

One word:

J-e-a-l-o-u-s!

Interesting.

I can imagine Crosby not being voted #1, but 8th?

Well, it's not an objective or scientific survey; we don't really know what the criteria were.

In fact, the criteria could have been different for every voter.

These are the guys who work on the ice, though.

Interesting.

Not #1, ok. But 8th? Nah.

We might live in a bit of a bubble, but Ovechkin being #1 probably doesn't do this survey justice. You could argue he's the best offensive player in the league, but he has very large lapses on defense. Crosby and Pavel Datsyuk, Zetteberg, and Malkin all play much better defensive hockey the Ovechkin. Pick one of those 4.

I hope Crosby had the chance to read the results of that survey.  How do you think that will sit with him?  Philadelphia, Washington, all the verbal abuse from the fans, all the physical crap after the whistle, and what did it get those teams and their fans?  How about 12 goals by The Kid.  That's alright, keep disrespecting The Kid.  Squeeze him out of the MVP voting, cool. Bring your pacifiers to the game (but have the brain to spell the word correctly!), call him Cindy, vote him a 3rd star in Philly just so you can have him skate out to be abused again, then don't vote him a star in Philly when he deserves.  Cool.  Keep it up.  Haven't they learned?  The abuse and the disrespect just motivates the young man even more.  8th best?  I wish they'd have voted him 20th best.  Just keep ticking him off and giving him the Semin treatment, right up until the time he hoists the Stanley Cup.

I find it quite amusing.  Kind of like how Alexander Semin said "What's so special about Sidney Crosby?"

This is what happens when you are the best player in the world (which he is - all around).  You become hated.  Anyone like Tom Brady?  I don't.  I refuse to say he is the best, but I know he is.  (Roethlisberger is a close second, but I say he is the best)

well - my heart is absolutely broken now.  I guess Sid will just internalize this like he has with all of the other snubs and just become that much better.  Ask the Flyers how that tastes.  Ask Ovie how that tastes.  When it's all said and done, he may not be the best of all time but he will definitely have left a legacy.

Why do people care about this nonsense? As far as I'm concerned, there are different meanings to the word "best".

If "best" means "most talented" then, no, Crosby is not the best. Ovechkin and Malkin clearly have more raw talent. If best means "hardest-working" then, yeah, Crosby is the best, and I don't think anyone would deny that.

Hockey is a weird sport where being the best doesn't necessarily mean you score the most. Generally, people attribute points to talent, but that isn't necessarily the case. Rob Scuderi might be one of the best defensemen in the league at the moment because of his incredible defensive play, but would anyone seriously rate him as such? No, because he doesn't score goals, and that's all people really care about when determining who is the "best".

I guess those players have a lot to do between rounds of golf and catching up on their DVR recordings.

Bob, the heading is misleading. Crosby was not voted the 8th best. It just happens that he got the 8th most "best player" votes. It is very much possible that most of the players place him 2nd or 3rd. We dont know for sure.

Now it is silly that he got the 8th most votes for best player, but if you look at the percentages, the percentages for best players are not that different after Lidstrom.

Also, I would like to see the players polled right now. I am willing to wager, Crosby will finish much much higher.

(His vote total ranked him 8th.  There is nothing misleading about that headline. -- Bob Smizik)

I just love how the yinzers of this town are outraged that Crosby and Malkin aren't one and two.  I think Crosby is one of the top 5 at least, but if the players think otherwise... nobody knows better than the guys they actually play against.

Bob, Saneman is just saying that this poll only records "first place votes."  If the poll was more like the Heisman you might have a better read on where Crosby falls.  Not that it matters, players tend to defer to vets and highlight sensations.

....I'd agree that SI's method of tabulating the % of first place votes (vs the Hesiman method as mentioned) put everyone behind Ovechkin ... then the rest were spread amongst other Hart finalists, incumbent Red Wing's greats, etc....lots of good players in the league

I think eatmyrings' Tom Brady comparison is accurate (although its much easier to hate on Brady because he displays an overload of that smug Patriot Arrogance" everytime he talks).

Comparing Sid, Malkin and Ovie is in some ways like the comparisons to Gretzky, Lemiuex, Yzerman era.  I view Sid in the Yzerman role:  the 3rd most talented player in the league,  still a top notch offensive threat, but the best overall player and the best team leader among three.  Like Stevie Y, he doesn't take a night off.  Was a first ballot hall of famer too....which is nice.

Oops, I think I said that Yzerman was the best overall player in the game.  I meant to say that he was the most complete player when he played, but thats not enough to say he was "better" then either Mario or Gretzky.  Thought  I better clarify that so that I can still walk the streets of Pittsburgh without fearing for my safety.

I agree w/ Saneman.  

The headline that would NOT be misleading would be:  

"Crosby Garners 8th most votes for Best Player in the NHL."

There is a difference.  Thanks, Saneman.