CRANBERRY TOWNSHIP, Penn. — Leave it to Sidney Crosby to get the party started in a way only Sidney Crosby could.

But when the 39-year-old snapped back up from an open-ice hit Ramsus Ristolainen levelled him with and regained possession of the puck, you knew it was going to end up in the back of the net. 

Crosby retreated to high ice, bringing another Philadelphia Flyers checker with him, passed the puck over to Kris Letang, and then he watched it filter down to Nick Robertson for the goal that kicked off a 7-0, opening-night rout for the Penguins on Wednesday. It was a statement sequence, an I’m-here-and-not-going-anywhere declaration delivered from a player who has an NHL-record 21 point-per-game seasons and is on track in Season 22.

Regarding Crosby's staying power, it appears eternal — both in the league he’s torched since skating in at 18 to hype that bordered on impossible to live up to, and in Pittsburgh, where he continues to propel the Penguins toward improbable success. 

Sorry, Montreal Canadiens and Colorado Avalanche fans, he belongs to the Penguins and, barring some completely unforeseen circumstances, he always will. 

That’s also a "sorry" to the Flyers, and to 28 other franchises in the league who must continue face this seemingly unstoppable force.

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