The NHL negotiation that everyone was thinking about since Kevin Lowe offered restricted free agent Thomas Vanek of the Buffalo Sabres a 7-year, $50 million contract last week has been concluded -- and no matter how you look at it, Sidney Crosby is going home a huge winner: Sidney Crosby signed a five-year contract extension worth $43 million that will keep the NHL MVP and scoring champion with the Pittsburgh Penguins through the 2012-13 season.For the math challenged, that's $8.6 million per year once his entry level contract expires at the end of the 2007-08 season.
The three-year contract Crosby signed as a rookie lasts through the coming season. The extension keeps him under contract for the next six seasons.
So does this make Crosby the highest paid player in the sport? Right now, it's hard to tell. Do you measure by average salary over the length of the deal, which is what counts against the salary cap, or do you measure just how much money will actually flow into Crosby's pocket once he gets past the end of his entry level deal at the end of next season?
Whatever happens, stop by nhlscap.com for the salary details, reports of which, while sketchy, seem to suggest that Crosby structured things to buy the Penguins some flexibility when it comes to paying all the other young players coming up behind him.
So what's next? Let's just say that all eyes have to turn to Washington, where the Capitals seem committed to re-signing superstar winger Alex Ovechkin before his entry level contract runs out. Needless to say, the bar has been set.
UPDATE: Make that $43.5 million, officially.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-10-2007 @ 1:10PM
Hooks_Orpik said...
E-Man, it's technically $43.5 million over 5 years, so that Crosby's hit is--you guessed it-- $8.7 million a year. 8-)
I think all Pens fans wanted Crosby to take the least money possible for the most years, but this deal is pretty fair for all sides. He's part of a union and can't give a massive discount. As it stands, $8.7 million might be well under the maximum for Crosby in 4-5 years and quite the discount, depending on where the cap is. I wasn't expecting a DiPietro-esque lengthwise contract either. I think forfeiting even one year of UFA for a player so young and so talented is a pretty big concession and a sign of his commitment to the organization.
As you mentioned, it'll be interesting to see how Ovechkin talks go. These Crosby ones were in the works well before July 1, I feel like we haven't really heard much of anything about AO.
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7-10-2007 @ 1:49PM
Jes Golbez said...
Ovechkin must be pissed that he can't get at least $9mil without looking like a total greedy-ass.
Crosby will be UFA at the perfect time in his career. While the Penguins get Crosby locked up for the long-term, this is likely not the biggest contract El Sid will ever sign.
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7-11-2007 @ 9:06AM
Mark said...
It's going to be great watching him here for the next 5 or so years. I'm glad he's staying in his adopted hometown. He's such a class act!
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7-11-2007 @ 10:48AM
Johnny23 said...
Sid you put my faith back in pro sports fugures. You stepped up and were not greedy, thought of your teammates and the fans of the great city of Pittsburgh. I think I will go out now and buy your jersery.
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