Brad Marchand gets real about the best player in the NHL.

Fans and pundits will debate about who the best player in the National Hockey League is until the cows come home and when the dust has settled you're still very unlikely to end up in a scenario where everyone is going to agree on a single answer.

Ask Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand about the topic though and there likely isn't going to be a great deal of debate, as Marchand clearly believes that the crown still belongs to one man above all the rest.

This week the Bruins forward was asked about this very topic and in typical Marchand fashion he did not shy away from the question and instead gave a thoughtful and genuine response to the question. While much of the focus these days surrounds younger superstars in the league like Chicago Blackhawks forward Connor Bedard, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews and Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid, Marchand believes that it is Sidney Crosby, the captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who remains in a class of his own.

"I think he’s still obviously one of the best in the world, but he’s not really getting the credit he deserves right now,” Marchand said. “A lot of the attention is on the younger guys, but if you look at the details of the game, and full 200 feet, he’s by far the best player in the League," said Marchand as per NHL.com.

Marchand likely knows this better than most given that the two Nova Scotia boys train together during the offseason where he gets an up close and personal look at the level of hard work Crosby puts into his preparation each and every season.

"It’s all in the way that he prepares and the way he has for years," said Marchand.. "I think what a lot of players don’t understand, especially young players, is that the work that you put in when you’re younger and early in your career and even throughout your career, it doesn’t benefit you for the next season, it’s a continuation of building it for down the road."

Marchand also lamented the fact that he feels Crosby doesn't get the praise he deserves at this stage of his career, with the league understandably focused on marketing some of its younger stars.

"That’s the way that the game is going,” Marchand admitted. “The young guys are getting the attention now. There’s a lot of flashy young guys coming to the League but if you look at the attention that Bedard’s getting compared to Sid, they’re not on the same level right now. Bedard’s a [heck] of a player for his age, but Sid’s one of the best to ever play the game."

In fact Marchand even issued something of a warning about this very fact, cautioning that this would only serve to further light a fire under the ultra competitive Sidney Crosby.

"They’re trying to grow the game," said Marchand. "They use the young names to do that. That’s great for the game of hockey, but you sleep on a guy like [Crosby], he uses that too. He feeds off of that. He’s got that drive, he wants to prove people wrong. We’ve seen it."