Rewarding creative heckler a one-shot deal for Penguins' Sidney Crosby

Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby has a message for would-be hecklers after he presented a particularly outspoken fan with an autographed stick Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.

The sweepstakes is over. No further prizes will be awarded.

“It’s not a competition,” he said with a laugh after morning skate Friday as the Penguins prepared to face the Winnipeg Jets. “It’s one of those unique things. I had fun with it. It’s not always the case.”

During Wednesday night’s game, Crosby noticed a Rangers fan near the penalty box needling him with taunts that rose above the standard of creativity he usually hears on the road.

First, he good-naturedly squirted a water bottle in the fan’s direction. Later, he presented the fan with a stick inscribed with the message, “Good chirps. Take it easy on me next time.”

ESPN.com identified the fan as Nick Lipeika, a firefighter from Connecticut, and gave some examples of his insults. For instance, he told Crosby that Evgeni Malkin would have more Stanley Cup championships if he had a better supporting cast.

“He had me laughing a bit,” Crosby said. “I’ve been in that situation before. Guys can kind of cross the line or take it a little far sometimes. I thought he did everything in pretty good taste. He had the section laughing. He had me and one of the officials in the box laughing. It was all in good fun, one of those things that doesn’t happen very often.”

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Jonathan Bombulie is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jonathan at jbombulie@tribweb.com or via Twitter @BombulieTrib.