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“It was my third Original Six team (along with the New York Rangers and Boston Bruins) so I’ve had the good fortune of playing for some really good organizations and it’s no different here in Pittsburgh.”

SID VS. AUSTON

Hainsey was not a teammate ofSidney Crosby for long — not quite five months after the Penguins acquired him from Carolina last season — but when Hainsey watches Leafs teammateAuston Matthews play, he sees similarities with Crosby.

“There’s a lot,” Hainsey said. “The ability to put the puck in the net seemingly from (anywhere). We have seen some of those this year where (Matthews) has crept his way in, pulled it, fired it, and everybody is kind of ‘Whoa.’

“The ability to take over games, which so few people have. Most of us are doing a role out there. Those guys, Sid, Auston, they can do special things.”

What has Hunwick, meanwhile, come to learn about Crosby that he did not realize as an opponent?

“You know his compete level and work ethic on the ice, but you see it daily in practice as well, how much he works on his craft and all the little things he can do,” Hunwick said.

“I just marvel sometimes when he is tipping pucks in front of the net and he gets his stick on everything and he does it in the most weird ways. You see him score sometimes, you think maybe it’s a fluke in the game and it’s really not. He works on that stuff. It was neat to come here and see that.

“(Crosby’s work ethic) sets a tone, for sure. Especially at this point in his career with three Stanley Cups and leading the league in goals last year, he has accomplished a lot. You would never know by going to watch practice. He has done everything, but does not take a day off. He is always working to get better and it’s a great testament to why he is where he is at.”