You can say many things about NHL icon Sidney Crosby.
For instance, he’s not a rah-rah, heart-on-his-sleeve dramatic leader like, say, Mark Messier was. Crosby is his own terrific hockey ambassador in his own way, but he’s a hockey fan who knows his legacy in the sport. And Crosby can see the optics at play with where he’s at in his career right now, and where his Pittsburgh Penguins are at.
When asked by The Athletic if it were possible that Crosby would consider a trade away from his beloved Penguins organization, Crosby’s agent, Pat Brisson, did not flat-out reject all trade possibilities involving No. 87.
“I mean, I’m answering something that…let’s put it this way, it’s always a possibility, you know?” Brisson said. “It’s been three years (the Penguins) haven’t made the playoffs. It all depends on how (Crosby) is going to be and how the team is going to do. I maintain the same position that I do believe that he should be playing playoff hockey every year. In my opinion.”
Now, Brisson is allowed to have feelings about the situation that may not be 100 percent in line with Crosby’s feelings. But Crosby understands he’s still got a say in how the rest of his NHL days play out.
If he were quicker and more rash to act, Crosby would be an ex-Penguin by now. But it’s a measurement of his love for the Penguins that he’s still trying to see what can be salvaged in Pittsburgh before he and the team even remotely consider going down two different roads.
“I understand it,” Crosby said at the NHL/NHLPA Player media tour in Vegas. “You’d rather be talking about who we’re getting at the (trade) deadline or where we’re at as far as are we one-two-three in the division. That’s the hard part about losing.
“Everybody thinks the buzzer goes, you lose the game and that sucks, but there’s so much more. It’s the turnover, the uncertainty, the question marks. That’s tough. It makes you appreciate all those years we were competing and going after that big acquisition every trade deadline. I didn’t take it for granted, but I definitely appreciate it that much more now.
“But it hasn’t changed my approach. I still go out there trying to win every single game and be the best I can be. That youth and having that energy around you isn’t a bad thing, either. We have a lot of hungry guys and a lot of competition for spots so you find different things to feed off and continue to learn from.”
Crosby’s favorite team as a young hockey fan was the Montreal Canadiens. So you can see that the possibility of Crosby being traded to the Canadiens makes many Habs fans all but drool in anticipation. And Crosby didn’t shy away from acknowledging the mania that undoubtedly would follow Crosby pulling on a Habs jersey.
“Trust me, I get it,” Crosby said. “Growing up a Montreal fan, I understand how passionate they are. My first or second year in the league, I was in Montreal for a CCM thing in June and they were already projecting the lines for training camp in September. I was like, ‘This is wild’. They’re so into it and I get it as to why that would come up. It doesn’t make it any easier to hear those things when you’re losing, but knowing a team like that wants you isn’t the end of the world.”
Despite Crosby’s delicate handling of the current situation in Pittsburgh, it’s readily apparent that he isn’t yet ready to move on from this Penguins organization.
Who knows – once Crosby does retire, maybe there’s a universe in which he’s in a key management role and keeps his connection to the game fully intact. He wouldn’t be the first superstar to take a run at being a GM or president of hockey operations, and he won’t be the last.
Still, Crosby just turned 38 years old. As a player, he’s got more miles behind him than ahead of him. But taking one more run with Pittsburgh – and one Olympic run with Team Canada – sounds like the immediate road ahead for him. No one can question his loyalty, nor his ability. We’re watching one of the final chapters of Crosby’s Hockey Hall of Fame play out in real time, and only time will tell if Crosby finishes his NHL days in the only professional jersey he has ever worn.
“We want Sidney to hopefully be in the playoffs every year,” Brisson said of Crosby. “We want him to hopefully win another Cup or two. So, each year the team that he’s playing for fails to make the playoffs, it creates a lot of speculation.
“In reality, he’s not getting any younger. We’re here to support him. It’s the beginning of the season here. Let’s see how things are going. Hopefully they have a great season, and the speculation will go away.”
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.
