Before we dive into this, let’s get one thing straight: Sidney Crosby didn’t suddenly become good at defense in the last few years.



Rather, the reality of what Crosby does on a nightly basis in the defensive zone is just finally getting recognition and traction that it deserves outside of the city of Pittsburgh.



Crosby’s lack of plaudits surrounding his defensive game come from the fact that he’s too good offensively. That seems silly when you say it out loud, but when Crosby’s game gets discussed on a national level, it’s always over high-vision passes, baseball swing-like goals, and offensive skills that seemingly defy all logic and physics. With all that he accomplishes offensively, people aren’t exactly lining up to watch highlights of Crosby’s work in the neutral and defensive zones.



Crosby’s defensive cognizance is on display on a nightly basis, but in the interest of figuring out whether...