Sidney Crosby left tens of millions on the table in contract negotiations with Penguins

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Liam McCormick
September 16, 2024 (12:50)

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This morning, hockey icon Sidney Crosby re-signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins at a discounted salary to stay with the team for his entire career.

Crosby signed a 2 year contract extension that pays him just $8.7M annually, which is the same value as his last contract that began in 2013. Crosby has always been paid lower than his market value, and according to Dom Luszczyszyn of the Athletic, Crosby has left nearly $43M on the table through his career.

Since he entered the NHL in 2005, Crosby has lived up to the hype and has been one of the best players in hockey history. He absolutely could've been the highest paid player in history through his career, but he's always understood the value of taking less to build a winning roster and a team-focused culture. Crosby answered today why he's never felt the need to negotiate for the most money possible.

»I think winning is the most important thing to me, and I think understanding the dynamic and how it works, and trying to give the team the best possible chance to be successful. Ultimately you gotta go out there and do your best and do your job. I think I'm more focused on that than the number, I guess.»
- Sidney Crosby

Seeing one of the faces of the NHL understand limits of the salary cap and take less to give his team a chance to win is a testament to how much hockey players care about their teammates and want to win.

The Edmonton Oilers have already locked up Leon Draisaitl to a long-term contract, and now will be talking to Connor McDavid to make him an Oiler for life too. McDavid and Crosby are extremely similar in their talents and leadership of their team, and likely he did last time, McDavid probably won't ask for the maximum value in contract negotiations next summer. The Penguins may not be a dynasty anymore, but the Oilers could be.

Source for Crosby Stats and Salary: PuckPedia - Sidney Crosby