Most teams don’t have franchise-defining moments in the first week of August, but as Jason Mackey of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes, that could happen to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday. Aug. 7 is Sidney Crosby’s 37th birthday, and Mackey wonders if it might be the day that Crosby signs his long-awaited contract extension with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Crosby has been notoriously superstitious throughout his career when it comes to the No. 87, carrying an $8.7M cap hit since the 2008-09 season and wearing No. 87 for his entire career. Many in Pittsburgh believe he will sign a new deal tomorrow on 8/7, but it’s fair to wonder what will happen to the team if he doesn’t.
Rob Rossi of The Athletic wrote last week that both sides left negotiations in July feeling comfortable enough that a deal was close and cited sources on both sides of the talks. By all accounts, a deal seems to be close, but as the summer drags on, Penguins fans are becoming more uncomfortable with the extended timeline, and as Mackey points out, tomorrow passing without a contract announcement will surely put fans into panic mode.
Dan Kingerski of Pittsburgh Hockey Now writes that there are no updates from his sources on negotiations, but also takes a balanced approach to breaking down the situation. Noting Crosby’s desire to wear one jersey for his entire career as his mentor Mario Lemieux once did for these very same Penguins. Crosby’s childhood hero Steve Yzerman also only wore one NHL jersey, and Crosby has always stated publicly that it means a lot to him to do the same.
Mark Madden of 105.9 The X and TribLive believes Crosby will sign, but he asked the question this week that many Penguins fans are scared to answer. What if Crosby doesn’t sign an extension on 8/7? It would be a scary reality for Penguins fans to face, the Penguins have pivoted to a retool and don’t have much in the pipeline to look forward to. If Crosby was to leave Pittsburgh, it would mean they are locked into many overpriced long-term deals, with a poor farm system and not much hope at the NHL level.
However, that moment isn’t yet a reality, and given Crosby’s superstitious nature and desire to remain in Pittsburgh, it is a reality they may not have to face until he retires.
