from Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review,
Haven't seen you around much,” Crosby said. “What's going on?”
I had the same question for him.
After our talk, I'm convinced that answer is one we all should have seen coming but couldn't because nobody likes to acknowledge the one opponent who is undefeated and never really challenged.
Father Time is a jerk. His most hurtful prank is sneaking up on us.
Crosby is 27, which seems so wonderfully young for a professional athlete. That age, or thereabouts that age, is thought to be the prime for an athlete. That's what it is for the Pirates' Andrew McCutchen (28) and the Steelers' Antonio Brown (26).
McCutchen and Brown have combined to play 11 seasons at the highest level of their respective sports. Crosby is finishing his 10th NHL season, and his 95 postseason games have him essentially working into a 12th campaign with the Penguins.
That's a lot of whacks to the lower back, slashes behind the knees, hip checks into the boards and pucks shot off unprotected skate boots.
It's all been too much for anybody to fairly expect continued dominance by Crosby. A toll was inevitable, and we all ignored the obvious signs last year, during and after the Olympics, that Crosby had already paid a steep price.
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