For captaining the Pittsburgh Penguins to a Stanley Cup win, Sidney Crosby was awarded the 2016 Conn Smythe Trophy as the best player in the NHL playoffs.
Penguins captain Sidney Crosby awarded the 2016 Conn Smythe Trophy
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Crosby enjoyed one of the best playoff runs of his stellar career, with six goals and 19 points in 24 games. Only San Jose Sharks captain Joe Pavelski scored more than Crosby's three game-winning goals. Three of the Penguins' wins in the Eastern Conference Final came off of Crosby game-winning goals.
While his contributions are not as flashy as winger Phil Kessel's or as obviously critical as goalie Matt Murray's, Crosby's merits are all-encompassing. Crosby finished fifth in faceoff win percentage, winning 52 percent of the draws he took. He also set up Conor Sheary's game-winning goal in the Stanley Cup Final. The Pittsburgh captain was on the ice for 11.7 high-danger scoring chances per 60 minutes in the playoffs.
That Crosby ended up winning the Conn Smythe is remarkable considering how he began the year with one of the slowest offensive stretches of his career. But now Crosby will add the Conn Smythe to his trophy shelf alongside his two Hart Trophies.
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