Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins looks on in the Honda NHL Four Line Challenge during the 2017 Coors Light NHL All-Star Skills Competition as part of the 2017 NHL All-Star Weekend at STAPLES Center on January 28, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Getty Images) LOS ANGELES – The NHL Accuracy Shooting event*during the league’s skills competition wasn’t as easy as Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby made it look.
Crosby came into the event cold then was tasked with trying to hit all four targets as quickly as possible.
“It’s hard, I mean you haven’t shot any pucks and you haven’t done much, you’re just kind of going out there and usually you get a warm-up, you’ve shot a few pucks in practice and it’s a little easier,” Crosby said. “The guys that were passing, I told them to fire them out as quick as possible so you can get a little bit of a rhythm and it started to feel al little bit normal as you went along and you just kind of get into it.”

Once Crosby got into a groove he shredded the competition, hitting the targets in 10.730 seconds to beat Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews who hit them in 12.280 seconds. It was the first time Crosby had shown his skill at the league’s signature mid-winter weekend since 2007 in Dallas.
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That was also Crosby’s only time at an All-Star Game. He has missed all other games he was selected for due to injury. In part, his ability to play this year has added a type of buzz to this game and the overall weekend in general.
“I think everybody recognizes him as the best player in our game and certainly has been so consistent over his career, everyone’s going to want to see him,” New York Islanders captain John Tavares said. “Whether it’s fans or media, even the players just being around him.
“He certainly put on a good show tonight.”
So far throughout the weekend Crosby has shown a high level of enjoyment. First he was named one of the league’s 100 greatest players and then Saturday he displayed his goofier side. There was even a point where he put on some funky looking glasses.
“Just to be out there with all the guys and see everyone showing off their skills, to see the crowd get into it,” Crosby said of his best memories of the skills competition. “When (Mike Smith) gets that goal too, you can tell the building was pretty impressed. That’s what it’s about. It’s about entertaining the fans and them seeing up close the skills all the guys have. I think that was just more or less what you’re taking in.”
Crosby still has one more day to put his stamp on this weekend. The hope for the Sunday 3-on-3 tournament is that Crosby will play on a line with fellow mega star Alex Ovechkin for the Metropolitan Division team. Wayne Gretzky will also coach the group.
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“He’s one of the guys that is one of the best in the world for a reason,” Montreal Canadiens defenseman Shea Weber said of Crosby. “He continually works hard at the game. Whether it’s his skating, whether it’s his puck handling, whether it’s his shooting. It’s always working. He has worked hard to get where he is and he is continuing to work hard to stay at that elite level.”

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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @joshuacooper
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