Sidney Crosby is now the highest paid teenager in NHL history.
Crosby, 19, re-signed a five-year, $43 million contract extension with the Pittsburgh Penguins, which will take effect for the 2008-09 season and runs through to the 2012-13 season.
The deal breaks down to $8.7 million per season, less than the 20% maximum a team is allowed to spend on a single player under the current salary cap (currently just over $10 million).
To be honest, I expected Crosby to accept less than this to allow the Pens the cap space to build and maintain the roster around him, but I suppose his agent and the NHLPA wanted to ensure he got as much as possible so as not to adversely skew the salary structure.
Still, I doubt knowledgeable hockey fans, especially those in Pittsburgh, will quibble over the amount. Besides, if the cap keeps rising from now until 2012, potentially hitting $60 million by that time, his contract will look like a bargain in the latter years of the deal.
The scary thing is, Crosby hasn't even hit his prime yet. He turns 20 in August, meaning he's still five years away from entering the period considered a forward's playing prime (25-31).
And really, what choice did the Penguins have? This kid is their franchise saviour as well as its best player. He was eligible for restricted free agency next summer, but you just know at least a dozen teams would've been poised to swoop in with mind-boggling offer sheets, likely considerably more than the $8.7 million they got him for today.
Smart management by Pens GM Ray Shero to avoid that possibility and for not playing "hardball" with his best player. As if the latter was ever on his mind to begin with!
A great deal for both sides. Crosby leaves some money on the table -- and the NHLPA can't be thrilled about that -- to be spread around to his teammates to build a contender. There's always pressure to go for the maximum contract, but really, how much are those extra millions REALLY worth when you've got a good thing going?
As a Pens fan, I did expect him to take less, about the $7.5-$8.0 the way the press presented things. But $8.7 for him is still below market value, especially since if he became and RFA multiple teams would have thrown the cap max at him in an offer sheet.
I agree this can be a steal in a few years. When Vinny got $6.6 from Tampa, that seemed a bit steep. After this summer, $6.6 is a steal for him.
The Pens really had no leverage in negotiations, Brisson and Crosby could have filled in whatever numbers they wanted. Considering that the deal does look better, and I think part of the reason that they were willing to take less is not only Crosby's liking of Pittsburgh and wanting to win, but also because it seems Shero is an easy GM to negotiate with (as is the assistant gm)
Smart signing. On the surface it seems that he could have given a bigger discount, but long term this will be a bargain. Players like Crosby don't come around every day and to lock him up for 5 years gives them a chance to build a winner now. We can only assume how Malkin, Staal, Fleury and Esposito will develop over time as any of those four could end up a bust. In Crosby, you know you have the best player in the league for the next 5 years. If in 5 years they haven't won it all, but are close, his resigning then will most likely have a bigger discount.
Well the final spector (no offense -- haha) hanging over Shero's head for this off-season has been cast aside. Now the Pens can concentrate on getting even better this season and possibly making it even farther in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Cap has been steadily rising the past few seasons and $8.7 million is going to seem like a steal in a few more years. This was a classy move by Crosby and a no-brainer for Shero. Sweet!
IMO, If the pens do not win the cup in the next five years i'd expect Crosby to skip town, and play in a big market like Toronto or New York or on a title contention team, who ever that team would be in five years(maybe the Las Vegas Predators) I know 5 years is a long way off, but the kid is young. He will only be 24-25 years old. BTW. good thing the Pens signed the contract before Crosby turned RFA. K Lowe, you can take that date out of your Palm Pilot.
Great move, I am sure he will get at least another 2 to 3 mill in endorsments. The NHL should kick in about 2 to 4 mill a season as well sence he is going to save the league
I think my post beat yours in, but oh well, you are way more respected then me, haha. But yeah, what I had to say about the signing is in my post. Great signing, love the deals that Ray Shero has made this summer.
That depends on how much the Penguins were willing to pay, and if they were anticipating a rival team to send him an offer sheet next summer. I suspect he wouldn't have gotten much more than what he took because, as he stated, he wanted to ensure the Penguins had enough money to retain his teammates.
I'd rather have Fleury than lose Malkin or Staal. Sorry, Luongo fans. Shero's gonna do it the old fashioned way...he ain't gonna buy it, he's gonna have the youngsters earn it.
Chaas: Pens can afford to move a young stud for a proven keeper. Fleury might not be the man. Why do you need 4 natural offensive centers under 21 yrs old on the same team?
KHenrik: it doesn't really make sense to trade awesome talent like that. They have an excellent goalie in Fleury, and I wouldn't be surprised if we saw Esposito or Staal playing the wing sometime in the future. Just because you play center today doesn't mean it's your position tomorrow.
Fleury seems to be pretty solid. He needs to bring his game up a bit more in the next season and then I say he's a made man. If he played any other position I'd consider Staal a more important resigning. I so want to see Staal hit 35 goals next year, and I think he can do it.
Sykora, Recci, Roberts, Malkin, Crosby, Staal and Malone will be fighting for spots on the top two lines and after that they've even got Christiansen to come up to the 2nd line if a forward get hurt. They're an incredibly deep team when you consider what they had 3 seasons ago. It's literally unbelieveable.
After this next season if Staal and Malkin play well again I'd get their contracts extended, and then look at picking up another quality defenseman. After that... can you spell dynasty?
I hate to play the devils advocate but, Fleury is not an "Excellent" goalie, he ranked 27th in GAA and 24th in Save Pct. I think he is the weak point of the team. I would rather play t-bo. Thadd is right, he needs to step his game up. He doesn't have to put up Backstrom or Brodeur numbers but just get the save pct up to .915 or so.
WildGophers, going to have to disagree. You are right that Fleury is not an excellent goalie, and his stats arent that great, but stats arent everything, especially when you look at the defense in front of him. I can assure you Patrick Roy could have had Melichar and Scuderi in front of him and his stats would have been bad also. Gonchar is our third best defnsemen in our own zone, what does that tell you?
Fleury kept the Pens in more than a few games this year, and during the playoffs he was the only reason every game wasnt a route. He, Crosby, Roberts and Staal were the only Pens players to play well that series. The high pressure situation everyone was worried about him choking in he played some of his best hockey of the year. He's going to be 23 this year, most goalies dont even make it into the league by that age.
To say he is the weak point of the team, and that you'd rather play Tbo, is a very off base comment, and I would suggest to those who make it to watch the Penguins on a more regular basis, and to not put so much faith into stats. Fleury is far from a weak point.
Last edited by 2ManAdvantage on July 11th at 6:27 AM.
I was very impressed with Fleury's play this year. The Pens are a young, energy-driven offensive team and that's always going to cause more goals to be let in than you'd like. I know Thibault finished with a decent season, but there's no way in hell I'd play him over Fleury. I don't think he's the be all and end all, but I wouldn't call it a weak spot either. I'd say the defense is more of a concern than the 'tending. That said, this will be a big year for him. He certainly has the chance to be something special if he can hang with this group.
I feel really good for the fans of Pittsburgh. They've had some mighty lean years selling off everyone not named Mario who could play, and now they've got the best in the game locked up for a good long while as he hits his stride. Ultimately, to the point about him perhaps going to a big market, the league might be all for that but he's a competitor and I see him pulling out all the stops to make this work. This team will be great sticking to the plan in a year or two. I personally don't think they are there as we speak, but it has to feel good to be a Pens fan today.
So #87 signs for 8.7 per, makes sense. He didn't break the bank, but he certainly wasn't going to play for peanuts either. I wonder what Malkin and Staal will be looking for when it's time for their deals? And the spotlight will be on Fleury now that the Penguins have built a very good team around him. No excuses.
I really don't care for Malkin. He needs to put on some weight. Like at least 20 pounds, and I know you can't just do that overnight. Whatever he's doing in Russia right now, he better be training for four hours a day, because everyone knows how easy it is to push him off the puck and that'll stop him from being a superstar in the NHL. Now Staal. He was my favourite rookie last year. He's big, can score, moves well for a big guy, and is more defensivly responsible than any forward with a season or two more expereince than he does.
That Staal who was drafted by the Rangers... he is going to be playing this year? Or does he need more time to develop?
There would not still be a PITTSBURGH Penguins without Crosby. Wait until the end of the deal when the 25 year old Crosby signs the $100 million dollar contract.
Think about how much the cap has gone up over 2 years.... 12 million? In five years from now the NHL might actually have a decent TV deal which makes it easy for anyone in America to watch hockey. Does money made from TV contracts go towards deciding the cap number? If it does in five years Crosby will be only 25... a 10-12 year deal worth 12-14 million a season could be possible. That's scary.
That's a good point, but just because hockey IS available for anyone to watch in the US doesn't mean they actually will. I'm not a fan of the Versus coverage, it's mediocre at best, and they definitely need more exposure, but it doesn't look like the changes the brain trust have already made have done anything but enable the owners to place higher tags on season ticket prices. Granted, as a fan of the game, I love what most of them have done, but is it actually making people who didn't watch before watch now? The Stanley Cup ratings give a resounding hell no. Regardless of that, Crosby did clearly take less money to stay in Pittsburgh and more importantly made his team better in a major way in just about every area possible. Had this been any other year, and had the strike not forced Crosby and Ovechkin in at the same time, you might have seen as close to a clean sweep by one player trophy-wise as ever heard of. He says the right things, he's a winner, and he's one hell of a competitor. I think Pens fans should relax and enjoy the ride.
Thadd hit the nail on the head. The rising cap says it all. This year Crosby's contract is a $2 million savings. Next year a 4, then a 6...and so on... The only issue would come about if the NHL as a whole went backwards financially.
A few notes on Malkin. First, he's not as weak on the puck as he displayed, especially late, last season. All of the people in the know were commenting on how Malkin ran out of steam in the second half of the season because he had never experienced anything as physically grueling as an NHL season before. I saw Malkin play in the world championships and have to say that I believe this theory. Malkin will continue to get better and better. I do hope for his sake that he worked on his endurance this entire off-season though.
Spector: 5 years at $17.4m? I like it, it means the NHL is doing well. That would mean a 73% increase in the salary cap in six years right? That means we have hockey back on ESPN in the states. That means his next contract after that includes 8.7% ownership!
Excited to see what this team becomes in 3 years! Wow! Watched them play Washington this year and was exciting to watch these kids even now. Crosby appears to have a great supporting cast around him (both team and personal) and seems tempered and steady. I thought the contract was definitely a frugal investment for Pittsburgh seeing as how contracts do become "bargains" after about 5 years. (A-Rod excepted, of course! LOL) A Kings fan and I get excited about this team's future....go figure! LOL
I'm Lyle Richardson, also known as Spector, Foxsports.com 's "Prince of Pucks".,which is based on the fact I live in Prince Edward Island, Canada and I couldn't think of a better byline. I've been an NHL hockey commentator since 1998 on my website, Spector's Hockey, and I'm a contributing writer for Foxsports.com , The Hockey News and Eishockey News. I'm also a regular on The Faceoff Hockey Show and a frequent guest on "The Late Crew" on The Team 1200 Ottawa.
