Whereas Sidney Crosby agreed to a two-year contract extension in September that included a full no-trade clause and will maintain him with the Pittsburgh Penguins by way of a minimum of the 2026-27 NHL season, the struggles the Penguins have endured from October by way of Monday’s 2-1 loss to the lowly San Jose Sharks (15-32-6) resulted in Crosby being the topic of commerce rumors for the second consecutive winter.
On Monday, Penguins insider Josh Yohe of The Athletic poured chilly water over such chatter that he known as “a drained waste of time.”
“He is keen to journey out a darkish stretch as a result of he believes the Penguins will flip it round earlier than he hangs up his skates,” Yohe mentioned about Crosby. “It’s what he wished. He signed that contract in September. These are his needs.”
Some questioned in November if Crosby was having second ideas about staying a one-man membership by way of the tip of his taking part in profession. That was earlier than Pittsburgh started the ultimate Tuesday of January as one of many NHL’s worst groups with a 20-24-8 record and a woeful minus-40 aim differential. Add in that star heart Evgeni Malkin is expected to overlook a number of weeks of motion with a knee harm, and it turns into much more comprehensible that each analysts and followers would assume Crosby may need to pursue a fourth profession Stanley Cup win elsewhere.
Such hypothesis ignores the truth that Crosby has repeatedly insisted over the previous few years that he desires to remain put. The Athletic’s Rob Rossi wrote that any speak about Crosby probably requesting a commerce is “nonsense,” partially as a result of the 37-year-old mentioned just lately in what’s grow to be a misplaced season for the Pens that he’s “going to at all times be right here” as a result of he’s “a Pittsburgh Penguin.”
“I’m unsure what else Crosby must say,” Yohe continued. “He holds the keys, and he says he’s not going anywhere. He’s extra of a fixture in Pittsburgh than fries on a sandwich or dodging potholes in March. …Crosby isn’t like so many superstars. He doesn’t want big-market consideration, he doesn’t push for his title to be in headlines, and he most actually doesn’t have to play with an all-star workforce.“
Briefly, Crosby is doing a superb job of maintaining it a secret if he really desires to go away the Pens earlier than the March 7 commerce deadline arrives.
