Hockey sense.

It's a buzzword throughout the sport; an immeasurable characteristic that few understand and even fewer posses.

The (unofficial) titleholder, though, as you probably know by now is Sidney Crosby. And as the Pittsburgh Penguins' captain takes another crack at reaching the 1,000-point milestone Tuesday night versus the Vancouver Canucks, it's his knowledge of the game many believe is the driving force behind his storied career.

"I don't think anybody is ever going to think the game like Sid can," teammate Chris Kunitz told Bill West of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. "I think he knows what we're thinking most of the time, so it makes it easy on us that he knows where we're going probably even before we're there."

Age has shuffled Kunitz down Pittsburgh's lineup in recent years, but the 37-year-old fully understands No. 87's methods, having rode shotgun to Crosby during his most effective NHL seasons, and in Sochi at the 2014 Olympics.

Kunitz's comments on Crosby's smarts aren't exactly hyperbolic, either, as "The Kid" ranks fifth all-time in points per game (1.497), trailing only Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Mike Bossy, and Bobby Orr. Crosby sits in the same spot for assists per game (.834), with Peter Forsberg replacing Bossy on the list of those ahead of him.

Crosby had two chances at reaching 1,000 points last week, and if history is any indication, it shouldn't be much of a wait from here.

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