So should we blame Kris Draper of the Detroit Red Wings for sparking the most ridiculous faux controversy of the Stanley Cup playoffs by complaining about Sidney Crosby's handshake line "snubs," or should we blame the media for fanning the cheap heat on the Detroit Red Wings' getaway day?
As the story goes, the Pittsburgh Penguins captain was too caught up in celebrations and postgame interviews after Game 7 in Detroit on Friday night to take part in the entirety of the traditional handshake line with the Wings.
Draper was outraged; Crosby refused to apologize, saying that he shook hands with about half the Wings and that "I just won the Stanley Cup, and I think I have the right to celebrate with my teammates. ... On their side of things, I understand if they don't want to wait around."
The Red Wings and the Detroit media had plenty more to say about Crosby's "right" to miss out on a playoff tradition.
Detroit players were asked about the "snub" on Monday while the Pittsburgh Penguins were having their parade to celebrate the Cup. Via Bob Duff of the Windsor Star, Wings forward Henrik Zetterberg had the most vitriol:
Even the normally polite Henrik Zetterberg took a swipe at Crosby Monday when he accused him of being disrespectful by failing to greet about half of the Wings' team, including Nick Lidstrom, Marian Hossa and himself.
"I think you should do it after a series, shaking hands," said Zetterberg as the Wings gathered for a team photo and to collect their personal belongings. "I think it's disrespectful. I don't know the reason he didn't do it, but I hope he has a really good one."
As you can see above, unless Crosby was embracing that Zetterberg impersonator, the Penguins star and the man who shadowed him in the Final most certainly shared a greeting.
Zetterberg was harsh; Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom called it a learning experience for Crosby, which of course it is: The old sports mantra "act like you've been there" is a little hard when he's a 21-year-old superstar that just captured his first Stanley Cup. If he made a mistake in the euphoria, it won't happen again.
But please: The notion that Crosby should have offered a hollow apology to defuse the situation is preposterous. Leave that insincerity to Letterman.
Comparing his lapse in attention with the outright disrespect shown by LeBron James in the Cavaliers' loss to the Orlando Magic during the NBA playoffs is misguided due to their divergent motivations, and ridiculous in that James was being intentionally defiant. One was a sidetracked winner; the other a sore loser.
Nail Sidney Crosby for his immaturity on this, but not his sportsmanship; there are plenty of other fine examples one can use to criticize the latter.
