When Sidney Crosby first heard the news of the helicopter crash that claimed the life of Kobe Bryant, he didn’t believe it.

“I spent a lot of time just trying to search and find out … if it was true,” Crosby said Thursday, four days after Bryant and eight others died in the tragic incident.

As a hockey figure that arguably means as much to the global reach of his sport as Bryant did to basketball around the world, Crosby’s thoughts on Bryant are relevant, even if the two never had met.

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) January 30, 2020

With the Pittsburgh Penguins on an eight-day sabbatical over the All-Star break, after practice Thursday was the first time Crosby was available to the media since the Sunday accident that claimed Bryant, 41, and his 13-year-old daughter.

Crosby said he was “shocked” when he heard the news.

“It just heartbreaking for his family (and) for all the families involved,” said Crosby, who, like Bryant, was drafted when he was 17 years old, made his big league debut at 18 and became a transcendent star thereafter. “He inspired so many people, and he’s a legend. And you see the reaction of what he meant to people around the world you’ve seen that over the last few days. It’s just I feel for his family and all the families. It’s heartbreaking.”

Keep up with the Pittsburgh Penguins all season long.

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