Dec 3, 2016 5 min read

What Sidney Crosby has been doing this season is Lemieux-esque.

Going into Saturday night’s game, he had 16 goals in 18 games. NHL goals are a lot harder to come by than they were back in the late 1980s and early ’90s when Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky were scoring 60 to 70 goals a season. So, what Crosby has been doing is enough to at least justify the question: Is he from the same planet as Gretzky and Lemieux?

He hit a puck in mid-air Thursday night and knocked it off Dallas goaltender Antti Niemi’s back for his 16th. It was ridiculous and he made it look ridiculously easy, which is what Lemieux used to do on a nightly basis.

Crosby’s assists are down, which is unusual, but so many of the 10 assists he had were examples of why in NHL scoring, assists are given the same value as goals.

You could probably have scored if you had been on the receiving end of seven or eight of those passes that resulted in goals.

And, unlike with Lemieux and Gretzky, with Crosby it’s about so much more than the points. He’s still the best grinder in the league. Nobody is better at winning battles for pucks along the boards.

My brother, Paul, the Penguins’ broadcaster, refers to him as “The Chairman of the Boards.” He backchecks enough to make himself the most annoying player to play against in the NHL and the only speed he knows is full.

A year ago, there were local talk show hosts and Twitter geniuses talking about stripping Crosby of his captaincy, moving him to the third line or trading him.

He’s 29 and never been better.

• Then there’s Andrew McCutchen. Why wouldn’t the Pirates be interested in trading him? He’s making $14 million, coming off a disappointing season and he’s reached Ralph Kiner status.

Kiner is the former Pirates Hall of Famer who, after asking for a raise from Pirates’ GM Branch Rickey, was told, “We can finish last without you.”

The Pirates can finish below .500 again without McCutchen. The Nutting family made it clear to Pirates fans before last season that 2016 was a “bridge” season.

Bridge to what?

Apparently, nowhere.

Trading McCutchen would be a smart business move. Enough fans will show up for the food and the view at PNC Park, and the Nuttings will get enough in revenue sharing from other teams to turn a nice profit.

According to Forbes Magazine, MLB revenues were up $500 million last season, which put total revenue near $10 billion.

The prospects the Pirates get in return for McCutchen will give the fans enough hope that another run at a wild card is only a few years away. And on and on it will go.

After the 2017 season, it will be 38 years without a championship for the Pirates. But who’s counting?

• Ben Roethlisberger said he has talked to Antonio Brown about his excessive celebration penalties after touchdowns. Brown was penalized 15 yards on Thanksgiving after scoring a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts.

I guess Steelers fans are supposed to feel good about the leadership being provided by the franchise quarterback.

Excuse me, but how old is Brown, 12?

How many times does he need to be told?

Brown is one of the best wide receivers in Steelers history. Only Lynn Swann and John Stallworth are in his class.

Swann went on to run for governor of Pennsylvania and Stallworth is CEO of a company that provides weapons to the United States government and employs 600 people. He also is part owner of the team.

Brown has funny hair.

He might want to think about growing up.

He’s 28, by the way.

• Did you see the goal Crosby scored off of the goaltender’s back Thursday night? Try to imagine him following that with some serious twerking.

• Pirates fans might be seeing their former MVP heading out of town any minute but at least they can feel good about renewing those season tickets after the signing of left-handed pitcher Wade LeBlanc. He’s 32, will be pitching for his sixth team in eight years and has a lifetime ERA of 4.39.

• The Steelers are getting a good test this week after beating back-to-back cream puffs in Cleveland and Indianapolis. The Giants have won six in a row and, unless Eli Manning comes down with a bad case of the flu before game time, they’ll be facing a real NFL quarterback.

A win would make them 7-5 and looking like a team that could run the table in their last four games and finish 11-5. A loss would have them looking like a team fully capable of going 8-8.

John Steigerwald writes a Sunday sports column for the Observer-Reporter.