Sidney Crosby made his NHL debut in the 2005-2006 season, recording an impressive 102 points and earning a nomination for the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league’s Rookie of the Year. Despite his outstanding performance, he lost the award to Alexander Ovechkin. However, Crosby still etched his name in the record books by becoming the youngest player to reach 100 points in an NHL season at the age of 18 years and 253 days.He also surpassed Mario Lemieux’s franchise records for assists and points by a rookie.
On April 17, 2006, in a 6-1 victory over the New York Islanders, Crosby added three assists to his tally, becoming the youngest player in NHL history to reach the 100-point mark. The game was temporarily halted for nearly five minutes as the enthusiastic crowd of 17,000 showered the ice with hats and T-shirts in celebration. Several fans held up signs proclaiming “Crosby 100,” and teammates gathered to congratulate Crosby as he returned to the bench. Crosby’s achievement surpassed the previous record held by Dale Hawerchuk
Despite the Penguins’ struggles that season, finishing last in the Eastern Conference, the world was introduced to Sidney Crosby, who, in my opinion, is the greatest overall hockey player to ever grace the ice.
The card pictured above is from the 2006-07 NHL Fleer Hockey set #HL1
