Tom Wilson and Sidney Crosby have been on opposite sides of the heated Capitals vs Penguins rivalry for a decade at this point. The two ultra-competitive NHLers don’t share much in common on the ice in terms of playing style but it turns out they do off of it.

The two revealed their shared hobby to ESPN’s Kristen Shilton and Greg Wyshynski at the recent NHL Player Media Tour.

“What’s your favorite off-day activity?”, the two Metropolitan Division foes were asked.

“I like anything outdoors,” Crosby answered. “Hiking, kayaking, fishing. Lake kayaking. I don’t mess with the ocean too much. [Laughs] I really enjoy that. It’s a good way for me to stay active, but I love being in nature, be on the water, and things like that, so if I get an opportunity to do that, it’s great.”

While Crosby has managed to keep his off-the-ice personal life almost completely private during his storied 18-year NHL career, his love for the outdoors is something he has been comparatively open about.

Crosby owns a lakefront property in rural Nova Scotia and when he’s in his home province, he’s more likely to be seen driving around a Chevy Tahoe than any sort of flashy sports car. According to a 2015 TribLIVE article, Crosby’s summer home is located off a dirt road and a stone walkway leads from his back patio to a 14-kilometer lake.

“You can see the chain pickerel coming 10 feet away,” Crosby said then when asked about the fishing in the lake. “Being here definitely allows me to get away, be somewhere where I’m pretty comfortable, whether it be with surroundings or the people, that kind of thing.”

Throwback to Sidney Crosby's very short (but relaxing) summer.

Thanks for the awesome video, @CCMHockey! pic.twitter.com/vz4I2n8O32

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) November 2, 2016

Tom Wilson was up next.

“Go to the dog park or go on a bit of a hike with the dog,”the Capitals winger said. “There’s some great trails in Virginia where we live so that’s always good to clear your mind.”

Tom, his wife Taylor, and their adorable pup Halle can regularly be seen enjoying the outdoors on all three’s Instagram profiles. And, yes, Halle has her own Instagram.

Wilson is also an avid water-goer, pictured here paddling away with Halle in September 2020.

So, while the two can frequently be seen butting heads on the ice, it sounds like they might enjoy each other’s company off of it. The two were recently pictured being friendly with one another at the very same event where the answers to these questions were gathered.

While Crosby expressing his love for the outdoors may make him finally feel like a human being to some, his answer to another question was very much more on brand. When asked what rule he’d like to see added to the NHL, the 36 year old waxed poetic about the long-gone and archaic two-line pass rule.

“I just want to see it: Bringing the red line back,” Crosby said. “Would just love to see how that would affect the game. You knew when it was there, there’s a ton of trapping and all that sort of thing, but it would just be a totally different game today. I think it would force you to have to make a few more passes.”

The two-line pass rule was utilized in the league from 1943 to 2005 and would result in play being blown dead when a puck was passed from a team’s defensive zone to a player on the opposing side of the center red line. Good defensive teams, think late 90s to early 00s New Jersey Devils, would exploit this rule and slow the game down to a snail’s pace. In short, it resulted in a whole lot of games with three or less total goals.

Stick to the bass fishing and paddleboarding, Sid.

Headline Photo: @Capitals/X