Crosby on pace for 19 goals

[meecrofilm]

He scored 39 goals in his rookie year using the same type of stick he is now..... I think he'll be fine.

Also, Geno only has 4 goals right now, and he's supposed to be more of a goal scorer than Sid is. Where is the "Geno is not scoring a lot, Oh Noes!!" Thread?

[Why So Serious?]

He scored 39 goals in his rookie year using the same type of stick he is now..... I think he'll be fine.

Also, Geno only has 4 goals right now, and he's supposed to be more of a goal scorer than Sid is. Where is the "Geno is not scoring a lot, Oh Noes!!" Thread?

Well to be fair, Geno looks more fresh and noticeable then Sid out there. And no one is going to argue about Geno when he leads the NHL in points through 14 games.

[Pens15]

The problem is the whole "on pace" thing has no bearings in reality. Kennedy was on pace for 164 goals after the first game. The Rangers were on pace to win 82 games this year after their first 8 or 9. Vanek is on pace for 80+ goals. "On pace" is useless when it comes to a critique like this. It would possibly be valid if Crosby had a history of scoring around 15-20 goals, had a bunch of big seasons, then came out this season on this pace. But even then...?

Knowing what you've seen of Sidney Crosby the past 3 years, what is more likely to occur?
a) He continues at this pace and ends up with 19 goals
b) He hits his stride and ends up putting in 30/40+ goals

Also, why must we always complain about a guy's stick? Crosby has taken thousands upon thousands upon thousands of shots with his current stick. He knows how to control where the puck goes with it. Patterns matter for the beer league player who takes 3 shots a week during his Tuesday night game. For an NHL player, it's about comfort. I would be willing to guarantee that changing his blade pattern would actually make him multiple times worse. If you've ever consistently played a sport that requires a bat, stick, racquet, etc, you know how it feels to change it.

True but it's not just about the on pace thing, even though the more the season goes on the more bearing it has. It like the other poster said it's about Crosby struggling mightily to score goals dating back into last season. It's obviously more noticeable with him just because of the sheer volume of chances that he gets, he misses a lot more chances than anybody else. The guy could score so many goals with the ability that he has but the finishing has been severely lacking. And like I said, not just the small sample of this year but for a good deal of time last year, even before he got hurt.

[Henry Hank]

But last year he played at a ~37 goal pace which is pretty much in line with what he did in his other two seasons. I think people are creating goal scoring struggles that don't exist. Crosby came into the league as a good goal scorer who has yet to progress into a great one. I think that's what he still is. His goal scoring has always been more streaky than the rest of his game. He's also still just 21.

[doublewinder]

I have not seen many Pens games this season, so those who do watch regularly maybe you can provide some answers.

What is wrong with Sid?
How come he is not scoring?
The games I have seen, he just does not look to be the dominant, confident, star he was PRE injury last season, what is your take?

Is it Sid's ankle just not 100%?
Is it mental...he does not trust his ankle?
Or is it another injury...or is he just overrated?

Do you think this is a short season type slump...or might it be an indication of Sid's whole season production?

[Bob McKenzie]

This thread is injured and overrated.

[Idoit40fans]

I don' tknow if he's hurt, but he definitely hasn't been stepping up to that other level that he has been capable of that often. After the first few games he's just played like a regular star.

[bhaw]

WTF? What was wrong with all the other Sid threads?

[Henry Hank]

Crosby's still flying and making plays. He's shooting more. I don't think anything's wrong with him. Malkin's not scoring goals either but nobody is making threads about that. In some order, I'd be willing to be a lot that those two end up one-two in the scoring race by the end of the season.

[SolidSnake]

How many people are there?
What % of the people there were wearing Crosby jerseys?
What % of the people there were booing Sid?
What % of the people there were from within 50 miles of Pittsburgh?

[Why So Serious?]

How many people are there?
What % of the people there were wearing Crosby jerseys?
What % of the people there were booing Sid?
What % of the people there were from within 50 miles of Pittsburgh?

Haha.

[Nizzy]

Crosby has a lower point production because he isn't get as many points on the power play. I'd say this is because no Gonchar/Whitney for him to move the puck back and forth with like he is used to doing. I don't care who scores as long as we win. I'm more then positive that Crosby would rather win a Stanley Cup then another Scoring Title.

So lets just keep winning and stop worrying about him putting the puck in the net, as long as the team is putting enough in the net to win.

[Pitts]

Crosby has had a bajillion shots on goal. Just none of them are going in right now. He's suffering from a bad case of Staalitis.

[Henry Hank]

Crosby has a lower point production because he isn't get as many points on the power play. I'd say this is because no Gonchar/Whitney for him to move the puck back and forth with like he is used to doing. I don't care who scores as long as we win. I'm more then positive that Crosby would rather win a Stanley Cup then another Scoring Title.

So lets just keep winning and stop worrying about him putting the puck in the net, as long as the team is putting enough in the net to win.

Compared to Malkin, I think you're spot on. Malkin has four more PP points than Crosby. He's generating a lot on the PP because the plays generally are coming from his heavy shot on the point. On ES, the different between their production is negligible. Crosby's had several games this year where he's been creating a lot and has been involved a lot and hasn't been rewarded much for it on the score sheet. Thursday against Edmonton is a recent example.

I don't know why so many people worry about him. He was the best offensive player in the playoffs in terms of points per game. He was microscopically behind Ovechkin in points per game during the regular season. You don't exactly have to look far back to see proven excellence from him.

[Bob McKenzie]

How many people are there?
What % of the people there were wearing Crosby jerseys?
What % of the people there were booing Sid?
What % of the people there were from within 50 miles of Pittsburgh?

Exactly.

[columbia]

Ovechkin has 2 goals.
No need for anyone to panic.

[Bob McKenzie]

Crosby's still flying and making plays. He's shooting more. I don't think anything's wrong with him. Malkin's not scoring goals either but nobody is making threads about that. In some order, I'd be willing to be a lot that those two end up one-two in the scoring race by the end of the season.

Totally agree. He could have multi-goal games the past few games but the pucks just aren't going in for him.

[Kovy27]

What's wrong with AO?

[Bob McKenzie]

What's wrong with AO?

Diarrhea

[meecrofilm]

Why. Just, why.

[Noise]

The problem is the whole "on pace" thing has no bearings in reality. Kennedy was on pace for 164 goals after the first game. The Rangers were on pace to win 82 games this year after their first 8 or 9. Vanek is on pace for 80+ goals. "On pace" is useless when it comes to a critique like this. It would possibly be valid if Crosby had a history of scoring around 15-20 goals, had a bunch of big seasons, then came out this season on this pace. But even then...?

Knowing what you've seen of Sidney Crosby the past 3 years, what is more likely to occur?
a) He continues at this pace and ends up with 19 goals
b) He hits his stride and ends up putting in 30/40+ goals

Also, why must we always complain about a guy's stick? Crosby has taken thousands upon thousands upon thousands of shots with his current stick. He knows how to control where the puck goes with it. Patterns matter for the beer league player who takes 3 shots a week during his Tuesday night game. For an NHL player, it's about comfort. I would be willing to guarantee that changing his blade pattern would actually make him multiple times worse. If you've ever consistently played a sport that requires a bat, stick, racquet, etc, you know how it feels to change it.

That's what I was getting at!

[Idoit40fans]

[Noise]

Andy Warhol shoes

[Henry Hank]

By the way, thread title needs updated... Crosby's on pace for 22 now.

[enenvee]

By the way, thread title needs updated... Crosby's on pace for 22 now.

Can we just put a "Crosby On Pace for __ Goals" ticker somewhere on the main page?