For Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, ‘There’s something to prove’
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Bill Radocaj has been a season ticket holder with the Penguins for a long time.
Like, Rick-Kehoe-was-the-team’s-top-scorer long.
Having had tickets in some capacity going back to the 1979-80 season, he has seen plenty of good and bad with this franchise dating to his days in the E balcony at the Civic Arena to his current locale in section 228 at PPG Paints Arena.
“I’m up in the cheap seats,” Radocaj, a native of Coraopolis, quipped.
His loyalty was lavishly rewarded Monday when captain Sidney Crosby arrived outside of Radocaj’s home as part of the Penguins’ traditional “season-ticket” delivery event before the start of the season.
(With virtually all tickets now digital, Crosby really delivered a gift basket of team gear, posed for photos, signed some autographs and chatted with Radocaj’s family on a warm, humid day in the western suburb that overlooks the Ohio River.)
“I never expected something this big here,” Radocaj said. “I didn’t know who it was going to be. I was worried if it was going to be someone I didn’t recognize, a new player or something. We couldn’t ask for anything better than Sidney. That was what everyone was hoping for.”
Another thing everyone with a vested interest in the franchise is hoping for?
A return to the playoffs.
Particularly the captain.
It’s been approximately five months since the Penguins were formally eliminated from playoff contention late in the 2022-23 regular season, snapping a streak of 16 consecutive postseason appearances.
“It’s long, it’s long,” Crosby said of his lengthier-than-usual offseason. “Even in the years where we’ve lost in the first round, everything was kind of pushed back by (the pandemic). … It’s been a long one. There’s been a lot of change, a lot of turnover. We’ve all just been waiting in anticipation just to get going. It’s nice to get close here and finally be at that point.”
The Penguins officially report to training camp Wednesday and will take the ice Thursday at their facility in Cranberry. And there will be plenty of new faces. Kyle Dubas was hired as president of hockey operations (then took on the general manager title), replacing Brian Burke and Ron Hextall, respectively.
And plenty of renovations were made to the roster. The likes of Jason Zucker, Brian Dumoulin and Jeff Petry departed and were replaced by Reilly Smith, Ryan Graves and Erik Karlsson.
That turnover was necessary considering their failure to qualify for the postseason this past spring.
It’s also invigorated the incumbents.
“Just with all the new faces, everybody is really excited,” Crosby said. “Everyone can kind of relate to that when you come into a new situation, a new opportunity. There’s something to prove, I think, for everybody. Regardless of the situation, that’s how it works. We all feel that right off the bat here. As far as the energy is concerned, there’s a lot there and everybody is excited.”
Crosby proved he still is a dominant force last season. After all, he was the team’s leading scorer with 93 points (33 goals, 60 assists) in 82 games.
Regardless, he wants to prove his team still is capable of competing at the highest levels of the NHL.
“You want to bounce back,” said Crosby, now 36. “When it doesn’t go your way, you want to respond the right way and use this as a learning experience. Hopefully, that’s everyone’s mindset. With a lot of new faces, I think everyone is really excited, has a lot of energy.
“For the guys that were there last year, they want to bounce back. For the new guys coming in, they want to prove themselves. That’s a good mentality to have.”