Hal Gill was one of the biggest players in the NHL during his 16 seasons in the league. He was used to punishing opponents with his big hits, so when he faced an 18-year-old Sidney Crosby, he didn’t think much of it — until he tried to hit Crosby.
Hal Gill was drafted in the eighth round of the 1993 NHL Draft by the Boston Bruins. He made his debut in 1997 and stayed in Boston for eight seasons before moving on to the Toronto Maple Leafs, Pittsburgh Penguins, Montreal Canadiens, Nashville Predators, and Philadelphia Flyers, retiring in 2014.
960 penalty minutes
During his playing career, Hal Gill scored 184 points (36 goals, 148 assists) in 1,106 games. But it wasn’t his scoring ability that kept him in the league for 16 seasons — it was his size and physical play. Gill racked up 960 penalty minutes over his career and was feared by many opponents.
Hal Gill tried to hit Sidney Crosby
But back in 2005, Hal Gill found himself lined up against Sidney Crosby. Not impressed by the rookie’s size, he thought he could overpower him without much effort.
“I wanted him to feel every ounce of my strength. First shift, I get him in the corner and I lean on him — and he doesn’t move. It’s like I’m pushing against a brick wall. And then he slips right off me, and he’s gone. I tried it again and again and again,” Gill wrote for The Players’ Tribune in 2018.
Instead of hitting him, Gill tried to outplay him.
“So the next shift I get out there, and I think, O.K., I’m going to force him to his backhand every time. That’s what I would do to guys I couldn’t handle, because everyone is weaker on their backhand; it makes it harder for them to pass. But Sid would fire pinpoint backhand passes 30 or 40 feet across the ice. It was like he was playing a different sport. How?! This guy is only 19. I don’t get it,” Gill wrote.
Won a Stanley Cup together
As it happened, Hal Gill was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2007 — and that’s when he fully understood why Crosby was so impossible to play against.
“I saw his work ethic, his leadership, and his passion for the game — nobody loves hockey more than Sid. And I saw his skill up close. His vision, his speed — and yeah, he’s got thighs like tree trunks — I saw why I couldn’t move him on the ice,” Gill wrote.
Eventually, the two would win a Stanley Cup together in 2009.
“Sid and I couldn’t have been more different, but like the whole team, we came together to deliver something great to the city of Pittsburgh.”
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