Faceoff Factor

Crosby-mania in the Maritimes

Ashley Gallant | Pittsburgh Penguins

May 21, 03:28 PM | Hype this story!

Many Canadians have long since said goodbye to their hometown hockey teams as they were ousted from Stanley Cup contention weeks (or months) ago.

For the last three seasons, many would rally behind the lone Canadian team still standing in the Finals, hoping that the Cup would return to Canada for the first time since 1993. That streak shall live on as the two remaining teams are American.

Does that mean that most people north of the border will turn off their televisions as the Cup Finals begin Saturday night?

Not at all.

Some Canucks have been fans of the Red Wings or Penguins for quite some time (yours truly included), but there are about to be a lot more people hop on the Detroit or Pittsburgh bandwagons.

Most people in my little corner of the country are jumping on the Pittsburgh bandwagon. It could be because Ryan Malone’s father was born in Chatham, New Brunswick and his extended family still lives in the area, or maybe it’s because the one and only Gary Roberts played for the Moncton Golden Flames in the 1980s. Then again, maybe Maritimers are declaring Pittsburgh to be their second favourite team because the captain is a Maritimer himself.

Truth is, Sidney Crosby fever is nothing new around here. You could find his Rimouski jersey for sale in any number of sports stores long after he left the team – I’m sure you could still find one if you looked hard enough. The Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame recently had a Crosby exhibit, displaying everything from the Lou Marsh, Art Ross, Hart, and Lester B. Pearson Trophies to his Montreal Canadiens baby bottle. If you wandered into Halifax Shopping Centre’s Sport Chek, you would find literally dozens of Crosby/Penguins jerseys, hats and sweaters for sale, and life-sized cardboard cutouts of Crosby hanging out around the store.

We are accustomed to Crosby (and Penguins) stories on the local news and in the newspapers, but the hoopla is starting to reach new heights. There is an excitement in the air that we haven’t experience in quite some time.

We were excited for Cole Harbour native Joe DiPenta when he won the Stanley Cup last year, but the thought of Sidney Crosby (possibly) bringing the Cup back to Cole Harbour has everyone in fits.

Crosby has gone from local hockey prodigy to the world’s best, and there is nothing we’d love more than to see him bring home the Stanley Cup.