{"id":120749,"date":"2025-07-11T12:44:11","date_gmt":"2025-07-11T12:44:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/120749\/"},"modified":"2025-07-11T12:44:11","modified_gmt":"2025-07-11T12:44:11","slug":"sidney-crosby-close-to-making-brad-marchand-like-move-close-to-nhl-retirement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/120749\/","title":{"rendered":"Sidney Crosby Close to Making Brad Marchand-Like Move Close to NHL Retirement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Brad Marchand may have had a dream first season with the Florida Panthers, but let\u2019s not forget that he had wanted to be a Bruin for life. And had a contract impasse not sent him to Miami on deadline day, that perhaps would have been possible. We\u2019ll never know. But a similar trade appears to be in the pipeline again. This time, the potential trade rumors involve the Pittsburgh Penguins, and the main character of the story is, unfortunately, the 37-year-old superstar of the team, Sidney Crosby<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Of course, the Penguins have made it clear that they do not plan on letting Crosby go. \u201cThere\u2019s no change at all to anything from our perspective. Everything that we\u2019re doing is about bringing the team back to being a contending team and our hope is to sure do that while Sid is a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins,\u201d clarified Penguins GM Kyle Dubas, as reported by Wes Crosby of NHL.com.\u00a0Sportsnet\u2018s Elliotte Friedman, however, reported that it may actually be the people around the veteran player who want him to move on\u2014to possibly make that one final push for the Stanley Cup before calling it a day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know everyone asks about Sidney Crosby; I\u2019ve said people in Crosby\u2019s orbit want him to go; Crosby hates it when this stuff starts; someone said to me if you really want Crosby to leave, don\u2019t talk about it,\u201d said Friedman\u00a0on the 32 Thoughts Podcast, as reported by NHL Rumor Report.<\/p>\n

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The Penguins haven\u2019t even managed to make it to the playoffs in the last three years, let alone win the Stanley Cup, despite Crosby practically giving it his all. In the 2022-23 season, the team couldn\u2019t cross the 50% mark in regular-season game wins and finished 5th in the Metropolitan Division. Then in the next season, they won only 38. And now, in the latest season, the tally was even worse. They could only win 34 games and were second-last in the division, just above the Philadelphia Flyers. The graph? Only a declining trend.\u00a0\u00a0In these three years, Crosby did a great job while scoring 278 points. In fact, his 33-goal and 58-assist season this past year saw him record his 20th point-per-game season, beating none other than Wayne Gretzky himself<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Elliotte Friedman: I know everyone asks about Sidney Crosby; I’ve said people in Crosby’s orbit want him to go; Crosby hates it when this stuff starts; someone said to me if you really want Crosby to leave, don’t talk about it \u2013 32 Thoughts Podcast<\/p>\n

\u2014 NHL Rumour Report (@NHLRumourReport) July 10, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

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However, according to NHL<\/a> insider Greg Wyshynski, all hope may not be lost. \u201cWe all pretty much figure that Crosby\u2019s out after Malkin\u2019s out, which is after next season,\u201d Wyshynski said on The Sheet. But he also speculated, \u201cWhat if you have [2026 prospect] Gavin McKenna there? Would that increase the chances of Sid sticking around and retiring as a Penguin?\u201d McKenna is a projected 2026 No.1 pick who currently plays at the forward position for the Penn State Nittany Lions. But in case Crosby does end up leaving, where could he possibly end up?<\/p>\n

Possible trade destinations for Sidney Crosby<\/p>\n

While Crosby may hate hearing speculations surrounding his trade, the rumor mill can hardly stop spinning. On Monday\u2019s episode of The Sheet, Greg Wyshynski sounded convinced that \u201cSidney Crosby will end his career in Montreal.\u201d And guess what? He is not the only one who is sold on the possibility.<\/p>\n

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During a recent episode of Sportsnet 590 The Fan, NHL insider Nick Kypreos, in discussion with analysts Justin Bourne and Sam MacKee, also sounded pretty sure that Crosby would end up with the Canadiens. In fact, he even went so far as to give a timeline. \u201cWait till they [Montreal Canadiens] get Sid Crosby after the [2026 Milan Cortina] Olympics,\u201d\u00a0Kypreos said. \u201cI\u2019m liking the odds a little better than I did maybe a few weeks ago.\u201d Then again, the Canadiens might not be the only team in the conversation.<\/p>\n

Thanks to Crosby\u2019s relationship with Nathan MacKinnon, he has also been speculated to join the Colorado Avalanche. After all, the two stars are close friends, train together, and both hail from the same region in Nova Scotia, Canada. That being said, MacKinnon himself has labeled the speculation as <\/a>\u201cFake news\u201d\u00a0with even Crosby\u2019s agent, Pat Brisson, dismissing them as \u201cbaseless\u201d. Where do you think Crosby will retire? Let us know in the comments.<\/p>\n