Sidney Crosby Named NHL Third Star for the Second Time in Three Weeks

Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, a previous two-time Hart Memorial Trophy winner, is tossing his name into the MVP mix again this season. Last week, he produced a league-high (tied) eight points (3G-5A), helping the Pens go 2-0-1 in three huge games versus teams they are fighting against for playoff positioning.
Crosby was rewarded for his efforts this afternoon by being named the NHL's Third Star for the week ending March 3. It's the second time in three weeks that he's been honored with a weekly award by the league. He was also the Third Star for the week ending February 18.

Prior to Saturday night's game against the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre, the Pens sat just outside a playoff position. By the end of the evening, Crosby had the Pens back inside the top-eight teams in the Eastern Conference thanks to a season-high four points (1G-3A) in Pittsburgh's clutch 5-1 victory. Crosby set the tone for the evening by scoring 21 seconds into the game.
Earlier in the week, Crosby helped the Penguins to a 5-2 win in Columbus on February 26 and one standings point in a 4-3 overtime loss in Buffalo. Crosby contributed a goal and an assist in both games. Heading into Tuesday night's home game against Florida, Crosby has had four consecutive games with multiple points, one shy of equaling the longest such run of his career.
Since February 1, Crosby is the second-leading scorer in the NHL with 25 points (7G-18A) in just 15 games. Only current NHL scoring leader Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning has more points (27).
This season has been one of the best all-around campaigns of Crosby's career. Not only has he once again been an offensive stalwart, ranking fourth (tied) in the league with 83 points, but he has also been one of the top two-way forwards. His plus-22 was tied for seventh-best among NHL forwards.
The four-point evening against Montreal left Crosby with 1,199 career points. When he hits 1,200, he and Mario Lemieux (1,723 career points) will help the Penguins become just the fourth NHL franchise to have two or more players record 1,200 or more points. The Penguins will join Original Six franchises Detroit (Gordie Howe, 1,809; Steve Yzerman, 1,755; Alex Delvecchio, 1,281); Boston (Ray Bourque, 1,506 & Johnny Bucyk, 1,339); and Montreal (Guy Lafleur, 1,246 & Jean Beliveau, 1,219) in having multiple players with 1,200 points.
Overall, this is the fourth time this year that Crosby has been honored by the NHL with a weekly award. In addition to his two Third Stars, he was named First Star on January 28 after winning MVP honors at the NHL All-Star Game in San Jose and also the First Star for the final week of October.