Sidney Crosby and Connor Bedard ahead of opening night

Ahead of Sidney Crosby’s rookie debut in 2005, he felt the weight of the NHL on his shoulders. The league was coming off a yearlong lockout. The team that drafted him No. 1, the Pittsburgh Penguins, was in such peril that it was exploring relocation. The hype surrounding the 18-year-old Crosby was insane; he was already a hockey icon before stepping on NHL ice.

Crosby returned home from his first NHL morning skate and did something he rarely does: He botched his pregame nap.

“I didn’t sleep at all,” Crosby said in an interview last month at the NHL media tour in Las Vegas. “It’s just like, you’re almost there, and you’re so excited, anxious, nervous. There’s all these different emotions you’re feeling. Nothing can prepare you for that. You have no idea what to expect. The [media] scrums, the buildup and all the stuff leading up to it, and you still haven’t played a game. So you almost felt like you shouldn’t be talking about it because you haven’t played yet. And knowing your family’s going to be there, and everything that led up to playing your first game, you have all these snapshots going through your mind.”

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Game 1 didn’t go as Crosby imagined. The Devils won 5-1. Crosby assisted on the lone Pittsburgh goal, the first of 102 points in his rookie season — which kick-started a career that somehow exceeded expectations. Now, at 36 — with three Stanley Cups and two Hart Trophies and on the cusp of breaking into the NHL’s top 10 scoring list — he’s able to reminisce.

“Trying to manage all that, you’re young, and you haven’t gone through stuff like that,” Crosby said. “Looking back at it, I look at it as a fun experience. It wasn’t something that was bad. It’s just very unique.”

CROSBY’S 19th SEASON in the league will begin with the same level of fanfare — for his opponent. The Penguins open on Tuesday (8…