Sabres goalie Ryan Miller is called for a tripping penalty on Sidney Crosby in the third period Monday at Mellon Arena.

The Penguins can’t explain it.

Nobody can, really.

If Ruff wasn’t a falling-down, card-carrying member of the Sidney Crosby fan club before, he became one when he watched the Penguins center in August at the Team Canada Olympic orientation camp in Calgary.

“He’s a special player. I understand that just from being around him the week in Calgary,” said Ruff, who will be an assistant at the Vancouver Games, while Crosby will be a marquee player.

“You gain a lot of respect for how hard he’s worked and how hard he prepares.”

Ruff said Crosby’s improvement through his career in shootouts, faceoffs and goal-scoring proves his point.

“Here’s a player that was already great that wants to improve a whole bunch of other areas,” Ruff said. “I think that’s a real good lesson for a lot of players — don’t be [satisfied]. If you’ve got young guys coming into an organization, what a guy to follow.”