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Sidney Crosby

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Name: Sidney Crosby
Also Known As: Sid, Sid the Kid, The Next One, #87, Captain Canada, Golden Boy, Creature, Darryl
Pronouns:
Occupation: hockey player
Medium: sports
Works: 3 Stanley Cups, 2 Olympic Gold medals, numerous individual trophies
Official Website(s):
Fan Website(s):
On Fanlore: Related pages

Sidney Crosby is widely considered one of the best hockey players in the world. He was nicknamed "The Next One" before he played a single game in the NHL.

Crosby features in Hockey RPF fandom and fanworks. Some of the tropes are his interest in history, some physical attributes, and his prowess as a baker of banana bread.

Professional History

Crosby was drafted #1 by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2005.

He became captain in 2007 and led them to Stanley Cups in 2009, 2016, and 2017.

Crosby scored the "golden goal" at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics final in overtime.

He was also captain of the gold-winning team in the 2014 Sochi Olympics, the 2015 IIHF World Championship, the 2016 World Cup of Hockey and the 2025 Four Nations Face-Off.

Fandom

Despite being the "face of the NHL", Crosby has been very good at separating his public and private lives[1] and has rarely publicly dated anyone. His romantic partners are not publicly well-known, even though he has been dating his current partner, Kathy Leutner, for over 15 years. This aspect of his public persona has led a lot of ficcers to write him as deeply closeted and/or asexual to some degree[2].

Fanon also translates Crosby's privacy into angst and/or deep-seated issues.

Fanfiction often portrays him as hockey-fixated; a rather bleak commercial he was involved with that influenced several early fics[3][4] and his strict adherence to rituals[5] contributed to that.

Common tropes that pop up are Sidney having an aversion to being touched (because he often keeps his hands in his pockets when taking pictures with fans[6][7]), extreme awkwardness & social obliviousness, and pining for his teammate, Evgeni Malkin.

RPF fans have also made use of the fact he played and moved in with player-owner and hockey legend Mario Lemieux as a rookie. He appears to have lived with the Lemieux family, on and off, for eight years[8][9][10].

While Sid/Geno is one of the most popular pairings in Hockey RPF, Sid is also often shipped with former captain of the rival team and former Team Canada teammate Claude Giroux, fellow Cole Harbour native and fan boy Nathan McKinnon or his longtime rival and fellow furture first-ballot Hall of famer Alex Ovechkin. Other pairings include his former teammate and longtime friend Marc-André Fleury, his former teammate and high school friend Jack Johnson, fellow great Canadian captain Jonathan Toews, and a few others.

Being one of the most proeminent figures in the history of the sport, even before he entered the NHL in 2005, Crosby is the most written about player in Men's Hockey RPF. As of March 2025, he is featured in 5,200+ works on Archive of Our Own. Most fics involving him are slash fics, some are gen fics. Because most fics revolve around relationships between players, they are rarely het fics unless there is genderbending involved.

Tropes & Fanon

Here are common themes used in fan fictions and fan discussions involving Crosby.

Rituals & Superstitions

Crosby is well known for his extensive superstitions.[11][12] The most common superstitions that appear in fanfics are: peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, jock strap, sweat stained baseball cap, no one is allowed to touch his hockey sticks after he tapes them, and many more.

Hockey Robot

Crosby is well-known for being a hockey nerd and a hockey robot for keeping his private life a secret, giving the impression he only cares about hockey and is programmed to play the game[13]. He is known to always be a hard worker at practice, always being first on the ice and last off the ice[14], texting his coaches late at night to talk about hockey[15], watching a lot of hockey games[16][17], practicing hockey when he should be on break[18][19] and just being a hockey nerd. Trainers have been known to hide his skates to keep him from practicing[20][21].

Crosby being obsessed with hockey has been a common theme in most fan fictions over the years.

Concussions & Injuries

Crosby has sustained some serious injuries throughout his career, and those injuries become major plot lines in fan fics.

He has a long history of suffering concussions. He only played 41 games in 2010-2011 and 22 games in 2011-2012[22]. Including the playoffs, it amounts to a total of 108 missed games in 15 months and because of that, Crosby thought at one point that retirement could be a possibility[23][24]. His head becomes a major concern whenever he is involved in checking, fighting or even just a regular scrum[25][26][27]. Since then Crosby has had 3 more concussions, one in 2016, one in 2017 and one 2022. Hurt/Comfort is a common theme in stories involving the 2011 and 2012 concussions.

Lower Body

The most famous lower body (meaning ass and thighs) in the NHL belongs to Crosby, it is known as one of his greatest strengths. His first NHL teammates nicknamed him "creature" because of his strong lower body for the sport.[28] In almost all stories, he always needs to have all his pants custom made - canonically probable as hockey players do find getting pants that fit highly challenging.[29] Crosby has said in the past that he does indeed get his pants tailored or buys stretchy ones[30].

Many hockey players tend to be quite tall and, Crosby being on the shorter side for players at 5'11 (180cm), many pairings involve an Height Difference aspect.

The Captain

Crosby has been the captain for the Pittsburgh Penguins since 2007, at 19 years old - the youngest at the time, and for Team Canada since 2014. He is the second longest tenured captain in the history of the NHL, only behind his idol Steve Yzerman[31], and is well-known as one of the best leaders in the history of the sport[32][33]. His role as team captain is heavily featured in fics involving him and his teammates.

The Legend

Crosby is widely considered as one of the greatest hockey players in the history of the sport[34][35] and younger players idolize him[36][37]. He is frequently asked to give advice to other, younger players[38] and players look at him as a role model[39], on and off the ice. Other players fan boying over him is a common trope to any pairing involving Crosby and younger players who grew up watching him. Many of these fics involve an Age Difference aspect.

Cole Harbour & Nova Scotia

Crosby is very proud to be from Nova Scotia and one of the few NHL players from the Maritimes[40][41]. He is from Cole Harbour, a small town in the suburbs of Halifax and returns there to his house during the off-season.The town's welcome sign famously reads "Cole Harbour: Home of Sidney Crosby"[42].

In fics, Crosby often returns to Cole Harbour in the off-season to be with his family. Therefore his characterization does have quite a Boy Next Door appeal. Sid/Nate is one of the biggest Sid ships and even non-shippers are fond of their relationship and want to see them playing together[43].

French & Québec

When he played for the Rimouski Océanic in the QMJHL, Crosby learned French. Although English-language fic writers often present his French as "terrible," that is not the case. He speaks with a heavy accent and does not have the greatest vocabulary but is fully capable of holding a conversation in French. Crosby has been playing in Pittsburgh for two decades and therefore his French skills have declined[44] and he does not hold any interviews in French anymore. However, he still speaks French with his fans[45] and welcomes his French-speaking teammates in French[46]. Learning French while playing for a Québec team was very important to Crosby[47][48] and it still is.

Crosby is close to and seems to gravitate towards his teammates from Québec especially Mario Lemieux, Marc-André Fleury, Kris Letang, Pascal Dupuis, Maxime Talbot, Team Canada linemate Patrice Bergeron and agent Pat Brisson. Some have attributed this closeness to Crosby having played in Québec[49]. Some of these friendships, especially the ones with Marc-André Fleury and Kris Letang, are often featured in fics.

Banana Bread

Crosby started baking during the pandemic and stuck with it because the players and staff seemed to enjoy it[50]. He likes to bake banana bread, his mom's recipe, and brings it to the rink to share with his teammates[51][52]. His teammates think he's a pretty good baker[53][54]. Crosby also hosts Thanksgiving meals at his house for teammates who don't have plans or family in town and says they can stay however long they want to[55].

Crosby's baking abilities has become somewhat of a recuring joke on Reddit and Twitter because of how endearing fans find it to be.

World War II Course

Crosby is interested in history and in 2015 took an online class though Southern New Hampshire University. His final exam involved writing a paper on the influence of radar in World War II[56] and he needed a little help from his sister, Taylor Crosby, when it came to formatting[57]. Crosby's love for history started in his childhood, when he volunteered at a veterans' hospital. Fics sometimes refer to him being a bit of an history buff and reading history books about World War II.

Goaltending

Crosby has said he'd like to play one time in the NHL as an emergency goalie[58] and sometimes plays goalie in practice. He played goalie for a roller hockey game in 2009 after winning the Stanley Cup[59]. He has also made several skater saves in the NHL.

Fans often joke about him wanting to be a goaltender and never missing an opportunity to play as one.

Philadelphia Flyers

Crosby is seen as one of the biggest Philadelphia sports villain and hates the city, its team[60] and its fans[61]. The first time he played at the Wells Fargo Center, defenseman Derian Hatcher high-sticked Crosby twice, causing him to lose two teeth. Both plays went uncalled by the officials and he received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for complaining to the referees[62] (this is the genesis of his "whiner", "crybaby Crosby" and "Cindy Crosby" nicknames). However, Crosby scored the game winning goal in overtime and Flyers fans quickly realized this would be a mistake they would pay for the rest of his career[63].

Since then Crosby has terrorized the Flyers as he is the all-time leader in goals, assists and points against them[64]. They are the team he has scored the most goals against[65] and the second most when it comes to points[66]. Flyers fans are known for booing him and chanting "Crosby sucks". Crosby has said this was motivating for him[67][68] and has been known to thrive in this kind of environnement[69] as shown by his dominant performances against the team.

Crosby's hatred of the Flyers and the rivalry between them and the Penguins is often referenced in fics, especially those shipping him with Claude Giroux or Travis Konecny, fully taking advantage of the Enemies to Lovers relationships.

Loyalty

Crosby is known to be very loyal to the Pittsburgh Penguins, he is known to be a mainly pass-first player[70] and a team-first player on and off the ice[71]. He always said that he admired players who played for only one team in their careers, like Mario Lemieux and Steve Yzerman. Even as the Pittsburgh Penguins have become a terrible team, Crosby remains steadfast in his principle that he will only play for one team in his career[72], saddening many hockey fans who desperately want to see him play on a contender for one last chance at winning the Stanley Cup[73][74].

Crosby has had the same 8.7 million dollar AAV since the 2008-09 season and has signed his last two extension at below market value because he wanted his team to be successful under the current salary cap system[75]. A fact that has been memed to death by fans because of his obsession with the number 87.

Example Fanworks

Fan Fiction

Fan Art

  • Cover art for a hockey RPF fic by xancredible using a photograph of Sidney Crosby.

    Cover art for a hockey RPF fic by xancredible using a photograph of Sidney Crosby.

Resources

References

  1. ^ How Sidney Crosby built hockey's most lucrative brand, Sportsnet
  2. ^ Former teammate Tyler Kennedy about Crosby, Twitter
  3. ^ "What do you call a life dedicated to hockey?" Reebok commercial, YouTube
  4. ^ Thefourthvine's commentary on 'The RBK Commercial for the End of the World'
  5. ^ 24/7 Ep.2 - Crosby rituals, YouTube
  6. ^ Sidney Crosby + hand in pockets, Tumblr
  7. ^ Captain AwkwardPockets Strikes Again!, Tumblr
  8. ^ The Guest House is a LIE: A PSA by solarcat
  9. ^ Years into concussion lawsuit, Jacobs and other NHL owners deny knowledge of CTE, TSN
  10. ^ Sid buys and sells a home, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
  11. ^ The rituals that Sidney Crosby won’t discuss: An old jock strap, sweat-stained hats and the McDonald’s arches, The Athletic
  12. ^ Superstitions and appreciation for Crosby ahead of 1,000th GP, NHLPA.com
  13. ^ (fr) Entrevue avec Christian Bouchard, Sidney Crosby - Rimouski moments *French video*, YouTube
  14. ^ Crosby, MacKinnon setting example with work ethic for Canada at 4 Nations Face-Off
  15. ^ Coyotes' Rick Tocchet: Sidney Crosby would text me at 10 p.m. asking, 'You up?', CBS Sports
  16. ^ Optimistic for new contract, Sidney Crosby 'more open' to playing into his 40s, Sportsnet
  17. ^ Yohe: Sidney Crosby always knew Connor McDavid was ‘The Next One’, The Athletic
  18. ^ Reflection trumps relaxation, The Globe and Mail
  19. ^ Sidney Crosby Skips All-Star Draft for Outdoor Rink in Montana, Gino Hard
  20. ^ (fr) Sidney « Darryl » Crosby et le miracle de la Caramilk, RDS
  21. ^ Sidney Crosby Got His Wings As Pittsburgh Penguins Won the Cup In 2009: Archive, The Hockey News
  22. ^ A look at Sidney Crosby’s NHL concussion history, Sportsnet
  23. ^ Sidney Crosby's lost season: 'What am I going to do if I can't play?', The Athletic
  24. ^ Sidney Crosby on The National, YouTube
  25. ^ Sidney Crosby overcomes major hurdles for 3rd Stanley Cup Final appearance, CBC
  26. ^ Neurosurgeon says if Crosby were an amateur, he'd be advised to quit hockey, TSN
  27. ^ Sidney Crosby's long-term health at stake: neurosurgeons, CBC
  28. ^ How Sidney Crosby earned the nickname "Creature", Montreal Gazette.
  29. ^ The struggle is real: Why hockey butts, jeans don't mix, ESPN
  30. ^ Spittin' Chiclets Interviews Sidney Crosby In Halifax, Nova Scotia, YouTube
  31. ^ just like me Sydney Crosby Steve Yzerman Ch 10 of 11, YouTube
  32. ^ Crosby to be Canada's 'security blanket' as captain at 4 Nations Face-Off, NHL.com
  33. ^ 'When He Speaks, Everyone Listens': How Sidney Crosby's Mentorship Has Passed On To Multiple Generations Of Teammates, The Hockey News
  34. ^ Orr tabs Crosby as top-5 player in NHL history: 'Sid belongs on that list', The Score
  35. ^ Sidney Crosby Stands Out as the New All-Stars Gather, The Athletic
  36. ^ 'Still has that aura': Crosby remains your favorite player's favorite player, The Score
  37. ^ Canadian teammates on Sidney Crosby: ‘When he’s in your locker room, you always think you’re going to win’, The Athletic
  38. ^ TSN (Crosby's advice to McDavid) September 9, 2015, YouTube
  39. ^ Sidney Crosby ranked “most complete player”, “best role model” by NHLPA membership, Pensburgh
  40. ^ Mini Documentary: Sidney Crosby and Andy O'brien, YouTube
  41. ^ Sidney Crosby: There's No Place Like Home, YouTube
  42. ^ Cole Harbour, Home of Sidney Crosby
  43. ^ It’s time the Avs Trade for Crosby, YouTube
  44. ^ Rimouski Scrum Crosby, YouTube
  45. ^ (fr) Seul sur la glace avec Sidney Crosby à Mont-Tremblant, La Presse
  46. ^ (fr) Desharnais galvanisé par un nouveau départ à Pittsburgh, NHL.com
  47. ^ (fr) Former Teammate Max Talbot - Sidney Crosby, Mathew Barzal et le français, YouTube
  48. ^ (fr) Guy Boucher parle de Sidney Crosby, YouTube
  49. ^ TRADE DEADLINE PREVIEW: Featuring Max Talbot & Ryan Kesler - Episode 548, YouTube
  50. ^ Sidney Crosby on Coast to Coast, Instagram
  51. ^ Baking Banana Bread and Beyond: Sidney Crosby's Thoughtful Gestures Define Leadership, NHL.com
  52. ^ Matt Vensel on Sidney Crosby, Twitter
  53. ^ Survey Says: Which teammate's the best cook?, DK Pittsburgh Sports
  54. ^ Penguins Discover Charms of Nova Scotia with Sidney Crosby as Tour Guide, NHL.com
  55. ^ Pens Inside Scoop on Crosby and Thanksgiving, Twitter
  56. ^ Southern New Hampshire University, Facebook
  57. ^ Crosby's off-ice life hardly reflects that of a superstar, TribLIVE
  58. ^ Sidney Crosby on playing goal in NHL: ‘I’d love to get the nod’, Sportsnet
  59. ^ Sidney Crosby Plays Goalie, YouTube
  60. ^ Sidney Crosby - I Don't Like Them, YouTube
  61. ^ Sidney Crosby on how much he HATES Philadelphia Flyers fans, YouTube
  62. ^ Phillys hatred for Sidney Crosby, YouTube
  63. ^ Philly fans knew Crosby would haunt them forever, YouTube
  64. ^ Sidney Crosby is the all-time leader in NHL history against the Flyers, Instagram
  65. ^ A breakdown of Sidney Crosby's goals against NHL franchises, Reddit
  66. ^ Crosby's point totals against every NHL team, Reddit
  67. ^ Sidney Crosby runs on the hate of Philadelphia fans, Pensburgh
  68. ^ Crosby continues to thrive against Flyers, NHL.com
  69. ^ Crosby, unfazed by Flyers’ hostile environment, takes over Game 3, Sportsnet
  70. ^ Crosby ‘just really grateful’ for longevity, approaching 600 NHL goals with Penguins, NHL.com
  71. ^ With below-market extension, Sidney Crosby chooses team-first legacy over greater riches, The Globe and Mail
  72. ^ 'All my energy is here': Penguins' Crosby shrugs off trade speculation once again, Sportsnet
  73. ^ The SAD ENDING To Sidney Crosby's Career, YouTube
  74. ^ Should Crosby Stay In Pittsburgh Or Request A Trade?, YouTube
  75. ^ The real story behind Crosby’s Obsession, YouTube
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