Sidney Crosby will be a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins for the next 12 years after agreeing on Thursday to a $104.4 million contract.
The contract was announced on the teams official website where co-owners Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle released a joint statement:
“This is a great day for hockey and tremendous news for the Pittsburgh Penguins and our fans. We are grateful for all that Sidney Crosby has done for our franchise since coming to Pittsburgh in 2005, both on and off the ice, and we look forward to having him in a Penguins uniform for the rest of his career.”
Under the rules of the leagues collective bargaining agreement Crosby can’t officially sign his new contract until Sunday when players with one year or less remaining on their contracts can make final decisions.
Crosby had his 2011-2012 season interrupted twice because of concussion symptoms he suffered in January 2011. Because of his history with head injuries his contract will not be fully insurable. NHL contracts over seven years are also not fully insurable.
Under his current contract Crosby’s final year makes up $8.7 million of the teams salary cap while his new contract will affect the Penguins’ 2013-2014 season.
In 2009 Sidney Crosby became the youngest player in NHL history to hoist the Stanley Cup over his head, he was just 21 at the time. Crosby has also won the Hart Trophy as MVP.
In 434 career games Sidney Crosby has scored 223 goals with 386 assists and 609 overall points.
Do you think Pittsburgh got a fair deal for Crosby?
