While Sidney Crosby agreed to a two-year contract extension in September that included a full no-trade clause and could keep him with the Pittsburgh Penguins through at least the 2026-27 NHL season, the struggles the Penguins have endured from October through Monday’s 2-1 loss to the lowly San Jose Sharks (15-32-6) resulted in Crosby being the subject of trade rumors for the second consecutive winter.
On Monday, Penguins insider Josh Yohe of The Athletic poured cold water over such chatter that he referred to as “a tired waste of time.”
“He is willing to ride out a dark stretch because he believes the Penguins will turn it around before he hangs up his skates,” Yohe said about Crosby. “It’s what he wanted. He signed that contract in September. These are his wishes.”
Some questioned in November if Crosby was having second thoughts about staying a one-man club through the end of his playing career. That was before Pittsburgh began the final Tuesday of January as one of the NHL’s worst teams with a 20-24-8 record and a woeful minus-40 goal differential. Add in that star center Evgeni Malkin is expected to miss several weeks of action with a knee injury, and it becomes even more understandable that both analysts and fans would think Crosby could want to pursue a fourth career Stanley Cup win elsewhere.
Such speculation ignores the fact that Crosby has repeatedly insisted over the past few years that he wants to stay put. The Athletic’s Rob Rossi wrote that any talk about Crosby possibly requesting a trade is “nonsense,” in part because the 37-year-old said recently in what’s become a lost season for the Pens that he is “going to always be here” because he is “a Pittsburgh Penguin.”
“I’m not sure what else Crosby needs to say,” Yohe continued. “He holds the keys, and he says he’s not going anywhere. He’s more 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 need big-market attention, he doesn’t push for his name to be in headlines, and he most certainly doesn’t need to play with an all-star team.“
In short, Crosby is doing an excellent job of keeping it a secret if he truly wants to leave the Pens before the March 7 trade deadline arrives.