from Andrew Bottomley of Sportsnet,

Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby has been one of hockey’s most prized possessions ever since his early teenage years.

After his recent Eastern Conference Final win earned him a ticket to a second straight Stanley Cup, the question begs: Where does Crosby rank among the NHL’s greats?

“Crosby could be the leader of the first team to win back-to-back Cups in the cap era and it would be his third Stanley Cup overall,” said Dan Riccio, on Sportsnet’s Hot Stove. “He is, at least, starting to chisel his face into the Mount Rushmore of NHL Players.

“On that Mount Rushmore would be Wayne Gretzky, Bobby Orr, Mario Lemieux and probably Gordie Howe. Is Crosby there yet?”

Crosby, who is still only 29 years old, has already compiled an outstanding NHL career.

In just 782 career regular-season games, he has recorded 1,027 points composed of 382 goals and 645 assists, good enough for 77th all-time. His points-per-game is off the charts -- especially considering that he is doing it in an era when scoring is generally down -- at 1.31, good enough for sixth most in the history of the league.

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