Sidney Crosby's Top Five Pittsburgh Penguins Moments

Although the official fifth anniversary of Sidney Crosby's draft day has passed, I would like to continue looking back at his NHL career so far with the second in this series of articles.

Crosby began playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2005-2006 season, under three months after being drafted first overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. He came into the NHL with high expectations to revive the Pittsburgh franchise and the potential to break records belonging to great players such as Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux.

No one can say for sure how Crosby's career will end. However, it is undeniable that he has already accomplished a lot.

Let's take a look back at Sidney Crosby's top five moments in a Pittsburgh Penguins uniform.

No. 5: 2008 Winter Classic

In the fall of 2007, the NHL had a new idea.

Why not take hockey outdoors in a NFL stadium?

Although an outdoor hockey game had already been played in Canada in 2003, this concept was new to American fans. The NHL dubbed it the Winter Classic and put the Buffalo Sabres against Crosby's Penguins in Ralph Wilson Stadium, home of the Buffalo Bills.

In front of more than 70,000 fans at the stadium and three million others at home, Crosby scored on Ryan Miller in the shootout to lead the Penguins to a 2-1 victory.

Crosby also had an assist on Colby Armstrong's goal in the first period.

Here is video of the goal that gave the Penguins the win:

No. 4: Draft Day: July 30, 2005

The 2005 NHL Draft helped mark a new beginning for the NHL.

The league was coming back from a season-long lockout that canceled the entire 2004-2005 season, and it needed a new face to put the league back into relevance.

Sidney Crosby was that face.

The Pittsburgh Penguins earned the right to draft Crosby by being the winners of "The Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes," a lottery drawing which was held about a week before the draft on July 22.

Here is the moment from 2005 where Crosby was selected. This video also includes highlights of his junior career so NHL fans could get excited right away about this high impact player.

No. 3: You May Call Me Captain

After Mario Lemieux retired in 2006, the Penguins went the remainder of the 2005-2006 season and the entire 2006-2007 season without a captain.

On May 31, 2007, that all changed. Crosby was appointed the 12th captain in Penguins history. At 19 years old, he was also the youngest captain in NHL history.

Leadership was nothing new to Crosby. He had been named an alternate captain in December 2005, a move that was widely criticized by hockey analyst Don Cherry and NHL veterans.

Crosby was initially asked to be captain during the 2006-2007 season, but he turned it down because he did not feel ready for the role.

But after that season, he knew the time was right, and it could be said that this was the moment the Penguins were officially "his."

No. 2: 2009 Stanley Cup Champions

After defeating the Philadelphia Flyers, the Washington Capitals, and the Carolina Hurricanes, the Penguins were ready to get back to the Stanley Cup Finals and once again square off with the Detroit Red Wings.

At first, it looked like the 2009 Finals would be just like the 2008 Finals. The Red Wings jumped out to a 2-0 series lead. However, the Penguins managed to tie the series twice in Games Four and Six.

Game Seven was back in Detroit for all the marbles. Unfortunately, Crosby suffered a knee injury and could not play most of the game. He spent the majority of the third period watching and leading his teammates from the bench.

When the clock hit zero, the Penguins celebrated their third Stanley Cup, and Crosby became the youngest captain in NHL history to lift the celebrated trophy. His statistics weren't great in the Finals (three points in seven games), but fans forgave and forgot as soon as he took the Stanley Cup from Gary Bettman.

No. 1: The Rookie

It's hard to imagine any season being better than the 2009 season where the Penguins won the Cup.

But Crosby's rookie year is one for the ages and will be hard for future NHL rookies to top.

Crosby scored his first professional point in his first professional game, an assist on Mark Recchi's goal in a 5-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils.

But he saved the biggest first point for his hometown crowd, scoring his first pro goal three nights later in the Penguins' home opener against the Boston Bruins.

When the 2005-2006 season came to an end, the Penguins were out of the playoffs. However, Crosby didn't have anything to be disappointed about. He finished with 102 points and broke Mario Lemieux's franchise records for assists in a season by a rookie (63) and points. He was also nominated for the Calder Memorial Trophy, but lost to Alexander Ovechkin, who had 106 points in his debut season with the Washington Capitals.

Crosby's first professional game and point:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paOvcF-uVuE