4. Sidney Crosby‘s Health
Dec 19, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby (87) at the face-off circle against the Minnesota Wild during the second period at the CONSOL Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Love him or hate him, and there are plenty of people in either camp, the NHL is a better league when Sidney Crosby is on top of his game. And for the first time in 4 seasons, Crosby has been healthy and not missed any games so far this season. He leads the league in scoring with 54 points in 39 games and is on pace for over 115 points. He has the Penguins on top of the Eastern Conference despite the team already having lost more than 220 man games to injury.
Oh yeah, the last time Crosby had a fully healthy season, he scored the Gold Medal winning goal for Team Canada in the Olympics. Coincidence?