Sidney Crosby = Ben Roethlisberger

As we brace ourselves for the inevitably awesome Sports Illustrated "City Of Champions" cover featuring Sidney Crosby and Ben Roethlisberger (much like the 1979 cover featuring Willie Stargell and Terry Bradshaw) one thing has become apparent to me.

Both Sidney Crosby and Ben Roethlisberger, even after winning a Championship, are still besieged with questions and criticisms from fans and members of the media who wish to downplay their talent and their success.

After Super Bowl XL the Seahawks fans blamed the officials, head coach Mike Holmgren blamed the officials, and suddenly the talk was about how poorly Ben played. And though he did play poorly in Super Bowl XL, he played so well in the 3 playoff games leading up to the Super Bowl that without him, the Steelers would not have made it to Detroit.

And much like Ben, after Sidney Crosby hoisted the Stanley Cup for the first time, there are doubters. Even now, not even 24 hours after the Pens won their 3rd Stanley Cup, the talk is how the Penguins won "in spite" of Sid.

They did not win "in spite" of Sid. They won without him. For one game. Sid did not play bad all series, he was not a liability out there. His presence made his team better. The Red Wings were forced to account for him all the time, and it had a tremendous impact on the Final.

Sure Sid did not post great numbers in the Final, but he was 2nd in the NHL for most points in the playoffs behind teammate and Conn Smythe winner Evgeni Malkin. He was also 2nd in points for the regular season.

To ignore what Sid has done for the Penguins leading up to the Stanley Cup Final is ludicrous. Much like Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers, the Penguins would not have been in a position to win the Stanley Cup without Sidney Crosby.

And though Ben still faces unfair criticism, his performance in Super Bowl XLIII changed the way many in the media perceive him.

Perhaps a better performance out of Crosby in his next Stanley Cup Final will do the same to silence some of his loudest critics. As long as they are not from Philadelphia, Washington, or Detroit.