Sportsnet: Rob Rossi on the Jeff Marek Show on what Sidney Crosby‘s next contract could look like.
** NHLRumors.com transcription
Marek: “What does Crosby’s next contract look like? You mentioned this summer he’s signing one to make sure he remains a Pittsburgh Penguin for the balance of his career.
Right now he’s 36 years old. We’ve all followed the story going back even before he played in the Q(MJHL) with Rimouski. What does this next deal look like?
Now we know the salary cap is going up so that makes it a little less painful but I am curious as are a lot of people, what do you think the number is Rob?”
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Rossi: “Ummm, I think it depends. I mean, I think that you know, I’ve talked to his people about this. I think it depends on whether Sid wants to say, ‘Look, I ain’t going anywhere but I’m going to sign two-year deals at maybe $8.7 (million) so that the number stays the same but it kind of puts the pressure on the Penguins to live up to their end of the bargain of building well around him.
Or maybe he signs a, you know, five-year deal and lets that number drop a little. I mean, he’s gonna do whatever is the best situation for him and make sure he stays competitive.
When I say he’s not going to play anywhere else, I don’t mean that this next contract will necessarily be his final contract, as much as I mean, he has no desire to leave. He’s not a fan of change. He doesn’t feel like he has to go somewhere and chase the Cup. He’s won three. His legacy is now tied to this organization. In fact, I would imagine as soon as he’s done, he’ll take a year off and then be welcomed into this organization in some sort of front-office role. Sort of the way his hockey hero, Steve Yzerman was with Detroit.
But yeah, I mean, if it were me I’d, if it were me, I would take two-year deals because that puts them under pressure to live by their word to build around you, and also they you can sort of hit your cap number based on what the team, what might be best for the team.
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But I think, you know, you could see him doing a five-year and if he does that, I think the cap number might dip a little bit, but it’s not like, I don’t see Sidney Crosby playing a new contract under a $5 million a year deal, nor should he. He’s, despite what certain lists say, to my mind he’s still one of the 10 best players in the league.”