Sidney Crosby: An Intimate Portrait (Brother)
© Joe Sargent
COLE HARBOUR, Nova Scotia - Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby has won three Stanley Cup championships, two Olympic gold medals, 12 individual NHL awards and was named to the NHL's 100 Greatest Players list.
But when Crosby hoisted the Stanley Cup over his head in Nashville this past summer, his second Cup title in as many seasons, his younger sister, Taylor, couldn't help but see the image of her brother from his youth.
"When he won the Stanley Cup it was weird for me because when I saw it I didn't see him as the hockey player. I saw him as the kid that I grew up with achieving his lifelong goal and dream," Taylor recalled. "It was emotional for me in that regard."
Taylor, 21, didn't have the same feeling when the Pens won the Cup in 2009 or even in '16. But she said that this year she "got it more."
"I understand how much he put into it," she added. "To be there and witness it, to see the little kid that I grew up with, I got to see him drink out of the Stanley Cup. It definitely was really cool to see that. He's worked his whole life for that."
Taylor and Sidney have a connection that goes back to the day she was born. They have a unique sibling bond that began in their earliest days.
"From the time I was little I always looked up to him," she said. "He really was my best friend growing up."
Which is why Taylor was devastated when her brother left home in 2002.
Taylor was only 6 years old at the time, and Sidney, then 15, was leaving to play hockey at the prestigious Shattuck-St. Mary's prep school in Minnesota - far from their home in Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia.
"When he left home it was just me," Taylor said. "It was hard. To have him leave when I was so young, it definitely was emotional. When I was younger I didn't understand why he had to leave."
At 21 years old today, Taylor now understands why Sidney had to play hockey elsewhere. But she remembers fondly those times when he would come home to visit. Whether it was attending her softball games and getting slushies together afterward or shooting basketball in the front yard, Taylor cherished every moment.
"It was always fun when he would come home and I got to see him for a little bit," she said. "It was just being together, even for a little bit, that I enjoyed."
In many ways, Sidney was the typical older brother. He would tease Taylor, fight with her over possession of the fan - Taylor and Sidney had to share one fan since the family didn't have air conditioning. Taylor would have it when she went to bed, only to wake in the morning to learn that the fan had somehow transported to Sidney's room - and, of course, he was protective.
That protective gene exists in all older brothers, but probably more so in Sidney due the age difference between he and Taylor. Sidney, who will turn 30 on Aug. 7, is nearly 10 years older than Taylor.
"Our age gap is so big that he was more like a dad to me than a brother," she said. "He does have an old soul."
She added: "As I've gotten older I stopped seeing him as my dad and more as my brother. If I ever did anything bad and couldn't tell my parents, I could go to him. I think down the road as we do get older that will be something that I will cherish more."
Taylor is a successful hockey player in her own right. She's an accomplished goaltender that has played with Shattuck-St. Mary's, the same school as her brother, Northeastern and St. Cloud State. She will be entering her junior season with the Huskies in 2017-18.
Despite her brother's stature in the hockey world, don't expect Taylor to go to him for advice.
"I try to, but we're both pretty stubborn," she laughed. "I'm a goalie and he's a forward. It's just a difference of opinion."
That being said, Sidney has certainly been an influential person on his sister's career.
"Growing up watching him workout, work hard and the person that he is, who he's turned out to be, that's something I aspire to," she said. "He's always been a role model and someone that I looked up to."
Taylor's own school even downplayed her brother's prestige. Listed in her bio on the university's website is the understated sentence: "Older brother Sidney also plays hockey."
But that's fitting for Taylor. To her, Sidney isn't an Olympic hero, a Stanley Cup champion or a generational talent. He's just her older brother, the same one that would be shooting pucks in the basement while she played with Barbies.
So it's hard for Taylor to articulate what it was like growing up with a hockey legend to most other people.
"When people ask me that I say he's just a normal brother," she said. "And they say, 'But he's the best player in the world.' I get that he's good at hockey, but he's just my brother."
Taylor and Sidney's relationship has changed and grown stronger throughout the years. Now that she is an adult they can relate more to each other's lives and support each other.
Even if they lose touch for a while, as soon as they reconnect it's as if nothing has changed.
"I didn't realize how special that was until I was older," she said. "I am definitely thankful that I have a brother like that."
As their relationship grows Taylor hopes that Sidney will be able to rely on her the same way that she's relied on him throughout the years.
"I know as I get older too he has come to me," she said. "I hope I can serve as a person that he can confide in. As I get older he can talk to me if he needs me."
No matter what happens in the future, no matter how many more Stanley Cups, gold medals or trophies Sidney may collect, Taylor will always see him as simply an older brother.
"He's still my older brother. He's still protective," she laughed. "That's never going to change.
"He hasn't changed a bit. He's the same brother that left when I was 6 years old."
