Crosby, Penguins say there is no deadline pressure for new contract talks

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas said on Monday that Sidney Crosby and the organization are comfortable entering the NHL regular season without having reached terms on a new contract. The team’s position, Dubas said, is that negotiations will continue through the process and are not tied to pressure to complete by a specific date.

Crosby, 39, is scheduled to play the final season of a two-year, $17.4 million contract that carries an $8.7 million average annual value, which the NHL player signed Sept. 16, 2024. Dubas said the contract discussions will continue with Crosby and agent Pat Brisson, framing the process as an open exchange rather than a deadline-driven sprint.

The Penguins and Crosby will still begin the regular season even without a new agreement, Crosby said this past week. The Penguins captain is set to open the season on Wednesday against the Philadelphia Flyers at Xfinity Mobile Arena, with the broadcast listed as 7:30 p.m. ET on HBO MAX, truTV and TNT.

Crosby has said he is comfortable with the negotiations not being completed before opening night. He also emphasized that his focus is on playing once the season begins, according to the public remarks attributed to him in the league’s announcement.

The new contract conversation comes as Crosby enters his 22nd NHL season since being selected No. 1 in the 2005 NHL Draft. The announcement also notes that Crosby is expected to continue discussions with the club rather than treating the start of the season as a requirement to finalize a future deal.

Last season, Crosby led Pittsburgh with 74 points, including 29 goals and 45 assists, in 68 regular-season games. The league summary says that production helped extend an NHL record of seasons averaging at least a point per game to 21, and that the Penguins finished second in the Metropolitan Division to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs after a three-year absence.

Despite the timing of the talks, Crosby suggested that the uncertainty of how his body will feel over the course of each season complicates long-term planning. In previously attributed remarks, he said he cannot predict how he will feel in January and therefore does not look too far ahead when considering commitments.

Dubas said the Penguins understand Crosby’s perspective and described the later-career extension process as less about deadlines and more about evaluating comfort with team direction and how the player feels during the season. He also said the club has not identified any indication that Crosby will be “in a poor place physically” due to the preparation the player is known for, as described in the announcement.

The league’s update placed Crosby’s situation alongside other NHL veteran contract frameworks. It cited Evgeni Malkin and Erik Karlsson as players in similar phases of contract status, while noting that each has distinct terms and communication levels with their respective teams.

Malkin is listed as having signed a one-year, $5.5 million contract on May 26, 2026, to avoid becoming an unrestricted free agent on July 1. The announcement says Malkin had 61 points (19 goals, 42 assists) in 56 games last season, and it adds that he indicated at the start of training camp that he was not committed to retiring after this season, which would be his 21st with the Penguins.

On Monday, Dubas said he would not publicly discuss any intent to bring back Malkin on another short-term contract, and the update described his approach as avoiding a year-by-year framing for Malkin’s next steps. The league’s account attributes that position to Dubas’ decision to keep the discussion from becoming a daily process.

For Karlsson, the update states he is in the final season of an eight-year, $92 million contract with an $11.5 million average annual value signed with the San Jose Sharks on June 17, 2019. It also notes he was acquired from San Jose in a three-team trade that included the Montreal Canadiens on Aug. 6, 2023, and it describes Karlsson as having not discussed a new contract.

The announcement says Karlsson, 36, had 66 points (15 goals, 51 assists) in 75 games last season and ranked second on Pittsburgh in scoring. It adds that Karlsson said new-contract discussions had not occurred and that he would see how things go during the season, while indicating he has enjoyed being in Pittsburgh.

The league update also included Dubas’ remarks about communication with Karlsson, saying the discussions have been direct and open. Dubas framed the approach around respect and clarity about where the team sees its path so that Karlsson can be comfortable with that direction, according to the attributed statements in the announcement.

Beyond individual contract talks, the release connected the discussions to Pittsburgh’s broader team-building aim. It states the Penguins’ goal is to separate from the middle of the league by developing younger stars and becoming less reliant on aging veterans, with Dubas describing the need for definitive progress that may require difficult decisions during the year.

The announcement said Pittsburgh’s return to the playoffs last season helped set up the current stage of planning. It notes the Penguins lost to the Flyers in six games of a best-of-7 series in the Eastern Conference First Round, and it ties that outcome to the urgency of moving toward contending, as characterized by Dubas’ public comments.

With opening night set for Wednesday against Philadelphia, the central message from Monday’s update is that Crosby and the Penguins can proceed into the season while keeping contract conversations ongoing, without a public deadline imposed on negotiations. The league’s account indicates that both the player’s perspective and the organization’s expectations are now centered on comfort, readiness and season-long evaluation rather than completing terms before the first game.

Crosby’s agreement is entering its final year, and the Penguins’ management has indicated that talks will continue with agent Pat Brisson. As the season approaches, the practical consequence is that Pittsburgh can begin the schedule with Crosby in place while leaving future contract decisions to be resolved through continued discussions rather than a fixed timeline set before regular-season puck drop.