Opening night: Crosby show gets top billing

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Nerves? Absolutely. Doubts? Nary Steelers Authentic Jerseys a one.Peter Diana, Post-Gazette"The first game is something you always remember. It's something you dream about. I'm going to enjoy it" - Sidney Crosby, seen here skating against the Bruins at Wilkes-Barre earlier last month. MORE COVERAGE Ron Cook: Lemieux won't pass torch this season Scouting Report: New Jersey DevilsNot long after he first dug his skate blades into an ice surface when he was 3, hockey prodigy Sidney Crosby imagined the moment he'll experience tonight at the Continental Airlines Arena -- playing in the National Hockey League alongside and against the best talent in the world."The first game is something you always remember. It's something you dream about. I'm going to enjoy it," said the soft-spoken rookie who has been a household name for years in the country that invented the game."The first time I put a Team Canada jersey on, it was pretty neat. I can remember getting chills. You're so caught up. No matter what anyone says, you're going to be nervous. I'm sure [my teammates] can tell me not to be, but it's my first game. I think everyone has some nervousness. If you can, you want to turn that adrenaline to your advantage."The chills may have been there when he donned the Canada jersey in the World Junior Championships, but so were his considerable hockey skills and his uncanny composure. Among his many distinctions is being the youngest player, at age 16, to score a goal in the World Juniors.That's a good reason, without the slightest trace of cockiness, he dismissed a question about whether there were any doubts going into tonight's game against the New Jersey Devils."I've done what I could do to prepare myself for this. That's all that matters. You have to play with James Harrison Jersey confidence. You can't afford to have doubt. Everything counts now. I think everyone's looking forward to the first game. We just want to get going."Ordinarily, an 18-year-old rookie would be doing his best to blend in on opening night. Crosby is no ordinary talent and this is an extraordinary time for the Penguins and the NHL. The league returns after being dark for a year because of labor issues and returns with new rules and rink configurations designed to revive the game.Not only was Crosby the No. 1 pick in the draft this summer, he's being touted as just the kind of talent that can save the NHL and take his place as The Next One.The cautious sports authorities will quickly note that Eric Lindros and Alexander Daigle never lived up to their hype, and that it might be prudent to allow him to play a shift or two before he's enshrined.But when no less an expert than Wayne Gretzky anointed Crosby as heir to the hockey throne, it's little wonder that the buzz surrounding his debut has been so LaMarr Woodley Jersey pronounced.In addition to having signed a $2.5 million endorsement contract with Reebok months before hockey returned from a lockout, Crosby has stirred a media frenzy. On the opening day of training camp at Mellon Arena, representatives from six Canadian newspapers and five TV affiliates were on hand.