Opinion: Sidney Crosby’s future is presumably clear – but it’s not for us to decide

When Wednesday, August 7th came and went this week, much of Pittsburgh and the hockey world went into a frenzy.

In case you haven’t heard, Penguins captain and future Hall of Famer Sidney Crosby is entering the final season of his 12-year contract, which began in 2012-13. He is also notoriously superstitious about his number, 87, which honors his birth date (08/07/87).

So when 7/8 passed without a contract extension, mass panic set in. The perennial tweets asking about Crosby’s future began to resurface and dominate hockey threads and discussion boards. Fans of some penguins, despite being repeatedly reassured by multiple Pittsburgh media reportsstarted second, er, seventh guessing again. The national media – and, in particular, the Canadian media – also got back into action:

In case you need to listen again, there is absolutely no evidence to suggest that Crosby will play anywhere other than Pittsburgh. He said it over and over again. GM and POHO Kyle Dubas said this. Apparently, both parties are on the same page about their future. And Crosby has often reiterated his desire to stay.

The question is this: how many times does this need to be said? And also, when are people going to let this go and give Crosby and the Penguins the time, space and privacy to negotiate without regurgitating engagement gains?

The reality is that no one other than Crosby himself and the Penguins really know what’s going on. And you know what? All good. It is the media’s job to report and talk about business. It’s the fan’s right to speculate. And with the ease of access and communication on social media, the “conversation” spreads like wildfire.

But if this “talk” were based in reality – and based on the evidence of what has been publicly said repeatedly – ​​this would hardly be an argument.

It would be good for the extension to happen as soon as possible. But there are probably a lot of things Crosby and Dubas should consider: How long does he want to keep playing? What dollar amount makes sense for the situation he and the team find themselves in? What moment are the Penguins? Will a long-term subscription be too risky? Is Crosby interested in signing a short-term contract?

The negotiation process is complicated and long. For a player like Crosby — who still plays hockey at an extraordinarily high level, who just turned 37 and who has played for one organization his entire career — it is, presumably, even more complicated and longer. It was reported that term is the main problem about finalizing an extension and that Crosby doesn’t want to jeopardize the Penguins’ future if he decides to retire early.

For an older, elite player like Crosby, this is a big decision to make. For someone as dedicated to hockey as Crosby, thinking about retiring probably isn’t easy. So the least fans – and the national media – can do is give him space to make that decision without trying to make it for him.

Crosby has earned the right to avoid discussing every detail of his thought process and negotiations, and he has earned the right to control his own destiny.

So let’s leave it.

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