ddenly falls off a cliff and lose every bit of grip you have and

PITTSBURGH -- A year ago at this time, everybody in the NHL was wondering what was wrong with Sidney Crosby.Since then, almost everything has gone right for the leagues biggest name -- a Stanley Cup, a Conn Smythe Trophy, a World Cup and, now, the best start to his career.Almost assuredly, Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs has been watching as Crosby plays some of the best hockey of his career -- and on Saturday night at PPG Paints Arena, a NHL No. 1 draft pick gets to go against the leagues No. 1 player on his home ice. For the second time this week.On Tuesday, 2015 No. 1 pick Connor McDavid put on a whirlwind of a show with three dazzling assists, yet they werent enough as Crosbys Pittsburgh Penguins beat McDavids Edmonton Oilers 4-3.Now, following the Penguins first regulation loss on home ice this season by 4-2 to the Minnesota Wild on Thursday, Crosby will match up for the first time against Matthews, the top pick in the 2016 draft.Matthews enjoyed the most exceptionable debut of any rookie in NHL history with an opening night four goals -- he scored on his first three shots, no less -- against the Ottawa Senators on Oct. 12.He got everything out of the way in his first game, Crosby said Friday, referring to Matthews getting a lot of career firsts in a memorable debut.The Maple Leafs are 6-5-3 overall and 4-1 in their last five games after scoring four consecutive goals in the third period to beat the Philadelphia Flyers 6-3 Friday night. Morgan Rielly had a goal and three assists.Quite understandably, Matthews hasnt quite kept up that pace -- he has two goals in his subsequent (12) games -- but then who could? Not even Crosby has scored like that; hes never had a four-goal game in the NHL.It doesnt seem that long ago that Crosby was the young phenom lighting up the league, and he knows what Matthews and McDavid are going through.Thats some of the best times, going to buildings for the first time, playing against guys you were watching on TV year before -- its probably the most exciting time, your first year or two in the league, Crosby said.Then again, Crosby never has scored like this. His goal Thursday against the Wild was his fifth in four games and his ninth overall in eight games; he missed the Penguins first six games with a concussion.The last Penguins player to score nine goals in his first eight games in a season? Mario Lemieux during his comeback season in 2000-01, when he also had nine goals in his first eight.So imagine how Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk felt Thursday night when, with his team playing its first game in five days, the Penguins captain was alone in front of him, with the puck, on Crosbys first shift of the game.Any time Sid wants to backhand it into my chest, Im fine with that, Dubnyk said, with a smile. His backhand is as hard as many forehands. Obviously, not the guy you want to see standing in front of you that early in the game.Or any time, the way Crosby is playing now -- at age 29, 11 years since he broke into the NHL as Sid the Kid. That kid persona? Hes handed that off to players such as Matthews and McDavid.It brings excitement (to the league), to see them having such a big impact on the league and on their team is definitely a good thing, he said.Crosbys own start-of-the-season flurry is even better than that in 2010-11, when he had six goals in his first eight games en route to getting 66 points in his first 32 games, only to sustain a season-ending concussion the first week of January.As Wild coach Bruce Boudreau said before the Thursday game -- Crosby is the best player in the world, and defending against the best player in the world in any sport is a major challenge.Crosbys great start has helped the Penguins go 9-3-2 in their first 14 games, aided by a 6-1-1 record at PPG Paints Arena and an identical 6-1-1 record in their last eight overall. Seth Joyner Eagles Jersey . Now that hes hitting streaking teammates with pin-point passes for easy layups, Love is asserting himself as one of the true superstars in the league. Andre Dillard Youth Jersey . Louis Cardinals. Victorino is batting sixth and playing right field after missing two games because of back tightness. https://www.eaglessportsgoods.com/Womens-Mike-Quick-Inverted-Jersey/ . President of baseball operations Larry Beinfest was fired Friday after 12 years with the Marlins. The move came as the team neared the end of its third consecutive last-place season in the NL East. Randall Cunningham Womens Jersey . The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling "puts an end to my dreams of being a top player," the 27-year-old Troicki said in a statement. "I worked my entire life for it, and it has been taken away from me in one afternoon by a doctor I didnt know," said Troicki, whose ranking peaked at No. JJ Arcega-Whiteside Youth Jersey . -- Peyton Manning will have all of his wide receivers available for the first time in a month when the Denver Broncos begin their playoff run Jan. Jenson Button says the resurfaced Hungaroring circuit made him feel like an amateur on several occasions on Friday due to its unusual grip levels. ?The Budapest circuit has been re-layed this year, making it less bumpy than in previous years. Fridays opening three hours of practice saw several drivers struggling for grip and Button admitted it would happen out of the blue.Asked how the circuit was feeling, Button said: Yeah, good. The circuit is fun to drive. Theres quite a bit of grip but the difference between grip and no grip is massive, so if you get a slide the tyre suddenly falls off a cliff and lose every bit of grip you have and feel like an amateur trying to gather the car back up because suddenly it doesnt work if you put too much load into it. So its very unusual.Its strange because you dont feel it coming and if the best drivers in the world cant feel it coming its unusal.dddddddddddd Its a mixture of the asphalt and the tyres, just getting them into a situation where they work on the asphalt.Button finished the afternoon practice session in eighth position, one place behind teammate Fernando Alonso as McLaren enjoyed an encouraging Friday.Pretty happy with how the car feels. Long run, low-fuel run, pretty good. Its tough round here at the moment though with the way the tyres work.Were pretty close in the middle of the field, but we were seventh and eighth. Everyone behind us is very close - the fight is definitely behind, not in front. Its relatively good feeling with the car around here. I like the way its smoother here, it works for us, definitely. ' ' '