PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Happy Birthday Sid, is there a big present waiting for you?
The Pens captain turned 37 on Wednesday as fans still wait for a contract extension for the second-leading scorer in team history.
It's been 11 years since the Pens captain was in this position after signing a 12-year, $104.4 million contract, which averages out to $8.7 million per season. Crosby has been superstitious about the number 87 which is his birth day and only number he's had with the Penguins.
Currently Crosby's $8.7 cap hit ranks him 43rd in the league with Patrik Laine and Dylan Larkin. The top five contracts in the NHL right now:
· Auston Matthews-Toronto $13.250 million
· Nathan MacKinnon-Colorado $12.6
· Connor McDavid-Edmonton $12.5
· Artemi Panarin-Rangers $11.642
· Elias Pettersson-Vancouver $11.6
Defenseman Erik Karlsson is currently the highest paid Penguins player at $11.5 million, a contract he signed with San Jose.
Crosby has not said how long he wants to play and really tried to downplay contract talks. He is on the verge of more milestones in 2024-25, his last year under contract
While the contract may not affect the coming season when the Pens have only $3.5 million of available cap space, the franchise will have $33.6 million of cap room in 2025-26.
While it's said about so many superstars, it truly is hard to imagine Sidney Crosby in any other uniform. It's been mixed results in Pens history with Mario Lemieux playing his entire career in Pittsburgh, but Jaromir Jagr and Marc-Andre Fleury did not.
Crosby still averages over a point a game which is the measure of a player who is still producing in the league. He is the second-best player in team history and led the organization to three Stanley Cups. When is a new contract coming?
