Why Penguins' Sidney Crosby Extending His Career Will Only Strengthen His NHL Legacy

For 21 years, Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby has been one of hockey's most talented, accomplished and decorated players. The 38-year-old center is having a strong performance at the 2026 IIHF World Championship, and in an interview with The Athletic, Crosby spoke about his future – and his future almost certainly includes multiple more NHL seasons.

"Not at all," Crosby said regarding next season being his last.

He also noted that he'll consider a year-to-year commitment when his current contract expires at the end of next season.

"It's pretty obvious why I would just go year-to-year with the contracts," he said. "At the end of the day, I'm just going to do what's best for the team. It's got nothing to do with how long I want to play. It's not like that at all."

You'd Think Sidney Crosby Would Be Too Old (And Too Tired) To Represent Canada At Worlds

Sidney Crosby has won more gold medals than most people will ever see. He brought the Pittsburgh Penguins back to the playoffs after being injured at the Olympics. And he's still going to the World Championship.

Crosby winning a fourth Stanley Cup probably isn't in the cards for himself and a mediocre Penguins team that's transitioning to a new era. But when we're talking about a living legend, we should want to see them compete for as long as they feel worthy of competing with their ‘A' game night in and night out.

No. 87 has been one of the sport's most stunningly skilled competitors, so we really shouldn't be stunned that he still has many more years ahead and will be around for a good long time to come.

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This story was originally published May 22, 2026 at 3:13 PM.