September 6, 2024 | 11:55am ET
TheFourthPeriod.com

CROSBY NOT RUSHING INTO NEXT CONTRACT

Sidney Crosby, centre

As teams prepare for training camps to get underway on Sept. 18, some players in the final year of their contracts will be put under the spotlight as media and fans wonder about their immediate futures.

Boston Bruins captain Brad Marchand, who is currently on an expiring deal, already addressed his contractual status earlier this week, telling reporters his negotiations will remain behind closed doors and will be addressed when the time comes.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are entering the 2024-25 campaign with the hope of competing after making multiple changes the last few months dating back to last season’s trade deadline when they moved out star sniper Jake Guentzel.

Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is now in the final year of his contract and speculation over a three-year extension grew towards the end of last season and arose again around July 1 when he was first eligible to sign a new deal.

According to TFP’s David Pagnotta, a three-year deal is still believed to be on the table, but as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported Friday on his “32 Thoughts” podcast with Kyle Bukauskas, Crosby is not rushing into a decision and may want to see how the team performs before committing.

“First of all, I think he took the summer – he doesn’t feel it’s a rush. He still wants to win badly,” Friedman said.

“I honestly believe the Penguins have made him multiple offers. I haven’t heard that he was ‘insulted’ by any of the offers. I don’t think it’s about that.”

While many reporters and insiders, including Friedman, believe Crosby will ultimately re-up with the Penguins, there are questions about Pittsburgh’s compete window and how long it can stay open.

After acquiring winger Michael Bunting from Carolina via the Guentzel trade in March – upon which Bunting registered six goals and 19 points in 21 games with Pittsburgh – Penguins GM Kyle Dubas added forwards Kevin Hayes, Cody Glass, Blake Lizotte, Anthony Beauvillier and Rutger McGroarty, and defenceman Matt Grzelcyk, via free agency and trades this summer.

“Dubas sent a signal in the off-season,” Friedman said. “I think that he’s sending a signal, with the trade of Guentzel, that as much as anything else, they have to try to rebuild a little bit. Whether it’s a rebuild on the fly or whatever you want to call it, they have to start building up the pipeline and the youth. To me, one thing I wonder, is if Crosby is simply sitting here saying, ‘I’ve got no problem with the offers. I’ve got no problem with the Penguins. If we’re not going to be making the playoffs, am I going to be able to handle that?’ And I think that’s one of the things he’s kind of weighing.”

Crosby is expected to take part in the NHL Player Media Tour next week in Las Vegas and will surely be questioned about his future with the Penguins if a new deal isn’t ironed out by then.

“My prediction is he stays because I think he’s a Penguin and he wants to be a Penguin,” Friedman concluded.

The Penguins have $59,121,427 in salary cap committed to their roster for the 2025-26 season, as per PuckPedia, giving them just over $28.878 million in cap space under this season’s $88 million cap. With the cap expected to climb to approximately $92.5 million for the 2025-26 campaign, the Penguins have plenty of space to accommodate Crosby’s next deal, which will likely come with a higher AAV than the $8.7 million he has this season.