Martin Galano: I was just wondering why everybody gives Sidney Crosby all the credit when there are other good players on the Pittsburgh team like Jordan Staal, Gary Roberts and Marian Hossa. Crosby is always beside the net, and anybody can score like that, so why does everybody give Crosby all that credit?
Pierre McGuire: Wayne Gretzky was one of the players, much like Sidney Crosby, who has the ability to make the players around him better. If you really watch him play, you'll see Crosby can create off the rush as well as anyone in the NHL. He has the ability to move the puck through the crease to teammates that are wide open as well as anyone. And he has a Peter Forsberg quality of being able to hold the puck in traffic until others get open and then dishes to them, making them look better. He's truly one of the best talents to come into the league since 1990 with Jaromir Jagr.

Stephen Cuddy: I saw the question during the NHL on NBC broadcast about the defensive skills of Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin, but is there any forward in the league that is a better defensively than Evgeni Malkin?
Pierre McGuire: John Madden, Jay Pandolfo are two that come to mind. Mike Grier, Chris Drury. There are a lot of forwards that are better defensively than Malkin. Jere Lehtinen down in Dallas. But at the end of the day, Evgeni Malkin is a star player that could potentially lead the league in scoring for many years to come. He is arguably one of the best two-way players out there. He is a spectacular player both offensively and defensively.

Jim in Canada: Do the Rangers have a legitimate chance at winning the Cup this year?  And do you think Jaromir Jagr will stick around for less money?
Pierre McGruie: I do think the Rangers have a legitimate chance to represent the East in the Stanely Cup Final. To pick them as a winner right now may be a little premature. But because of the way Henrik Lundqvist is playing. Because of the way Marc Staal , Daniel Girardi and Fedor Tyutin have grown as young defensemen in the NHL, the Rangers are ahead of the curve. I do think Jagr would stay in New York for less money. He's very happy there. He loves playing with Brandon Dubinsky and Sean Avery. He really enjoys playing for Tom Renney. Tom Renney is one of the few coaches since Bob Johnson that's really handled Jaromir Jagr well. So, I think the Rangers can keep this thing growing for a long time. They've done a good job internally developing young players at the NHL level which is not an easy thing to do.

Matthew Logan: Do you think Colorado can win it's division, and do you think they are strong enough with the additions of Forsberg, Foote and Salei to go very deep in the playoffs and possibly take home the Cup?
Eddie Olczyk: Yes, I think they can win the division. I definitely think they make some noise come the playoffs. They'll need some luck and some bounces to get to the Western Conference Finals. With Smyth and Svatos out, the injury problems are front and center. I think that will be the deciding factor in whether or not they can get to the Cup final.

Steven Price: With all the emphasis on reducing obstruction fouls, why has the NHL not gone to the 100 X 200 rink like the international game?
Eddie Olczyk: First of all, you're going to lose a row or two of seats, and to me that's first and foremost if you're running a business. You're losing prime income from tickets. Second of all, I do not believe if you went to an Olympic-sized rink there'd be more scoring chances. If you watch a game in Europe, everything is in the middle, players let players skate to the outsides, and you have to get to the scoring areas to create and finish. I don't believe it would enhance scoring. If anything, there would be less contact in the game and teams would just collapse and protect even more. You'd see less physicality with a bigger rink.

Kevin Robin: Do you think the Penguin enforcers do enough to protect Crosby and Malkin ? Gretzky had McSorley and others who kept everyone at a distance from the Great One.
Eddie Olczyk: Well I don't think it's fair to compare eras because the rules are different. The rules protect a lot of the situations whereas back in the day it was the players policing and the players protecting. I think they do a good job within the rules, but to me, it would be really unfair to compare guys' roles 20 years ago to what they are today.

Slide show   Week in Sports Pictures Dogs on the ski slopes, motorcycles in the harbor and more madness from the sports world. more photos

C.J. in Atlanta: What do you think of teams playing the "Roger Clemens" card and bringing back old veterans who haven't had the daily grind of a full season to make a run at the playoffs?
Mike Milbury: I don't like it at all. I think the league should address it. I think a better cut off date should be Dec. 1. If an older player is having some issues deciding whether or not he wants to retire, give him the benefit of a couple extra months, but I think bringing people in at that late stage who haven't participated in the league is an unfair advantage. It might not always even be an advantage, but I don't think its right. I think the league should take a look at it. I don't like the trend, and it's happening more and more frequently.

Nate in Pittsburgh: With all the talent at center that Pittsburgh has, why do they struggle to win face offs?
Mike Milbury: Face offs are a real art form. Some guys seem to have a knack for it and others don't. I'll take my page from the Bobby Clark school of face offs. He said you just have to want it. You have to get down, get strong and really focus on it. Unfortunately the Penguins aren't gifted in that regard. It's hand-eye coordination, timing, there's a lot of things that go into winning a face off. I think it has to be addressed because it can win you or lose you hockey games. But if the Penguins are feeling themselves a little out of it, they'd be well-advised to work on it and find someone who can win it because you're unlikely to turn the guys who aren't good at it into demons at the face off circle.

Amy and Jerry: My wife and I (Pens season ticket holders) are somewhat puzzled by Michel Therrien's decision to go with goalie Marc-Andre Fleury. He struggled during the early season and never really posted the kind of stats that Ty Conklin has been able to put up. Is Therrien making a big gamble?
Mike Milbury: Conklin did salvage the season for Pittsburgh. I would be surprised if the coach was just going to throw him under the bus and throw him into the alternate goalie bin and let him rot while Fleury does his thing. I think he has to juggle them to the point where they're both happy and both as functional as possible. And if it turns out that one or the other has the hot hand, then you have to ride that while you can. I'll be surprised if Conklin doesn't get his fair share of time after how well he played earlier in the season.

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