Sidney Crosby and the rumors of him leaving the Pittsburgh Penguins seem inseparable, with experts and insiders coming out with conflicting statements. As for former Sportsnet panelist John Shannon, he said he doesn’t see the Team Canada captain leaving Pittsburgh. “I do not see it, period,” said Shannon, while considering Frank Seravailli backed that notion.

“I think it’s still a real long shot. Mostly because I think we’re taking Sidney Crosby — I think you have to take him at his own word,” Seravalli explained on his Bleacher Report podcast last month. Crosby’s current contract doesn’t wrap up before 2026-27, and he’s on a no-movement clause. However, his age and interest from other clubs have led others to sing a different tune.

Again, in early July, ESPN‘s Greg Wyshynski said something different. “I’ve long believed that Sidney Crosby will end his career in Montreal,” he said on The Sheet with Jeff Marek. Yet, with the off-season signings slowing down and another year of NHL hockey approaching, John Shannon has reiterated his stance. “I don’t ever see Sidney Crosby leaving Pittsburgh. Ever. I just don’t,” Shannon said on the Sekeres and Price show.

The Sports Emmy award-winning journalist explained that, despite the rough patch the Penguins are going through now, Crosby is following in Mario Lemieux’s footsteps. The NHL legend only ever played for Pittsburgh, and his loyalty to the team will forever be part of Lemieux’s legacy. Shannon believes Crosby aims to emulate the same thing.

“It’s not a Ray Bourque situation where after 20 years he hasn’t won the Stanley Cup,” Shannon added. Meanwhile, another reputed insider, Elliotte Friedman, also backed up Shannon’s claim. “We also got like the, we got the preliminary media list and says Sidney Crosby, Penguin,” Friedman said about the 38-year-old’s future with the Penguins.

“So that one was a sign to me that he’s, if anybody doubted that he’s not getting traded this summer, he’s definitely not getting for the media tour,” Friedman shared on 32 Thoughts. Yet, one of the biggest factors behind all this talk barely seems to affect Crosby.

Age is just a number for Sidney Crosby

One of the biggest reasons behind the rumor mill on Crosby’s departure constantly churning is his age. At 38, many believe Crosby is slowing down, but Crosby isn’t too bothered about it. “It’s better not to think too far ahead, but, you know, that’s served me pretty good to this point, so I’ll keep approaching it that way,” the NHL icon said about his approach to hockey.

However, Paul Pidutti on X highlighted a stat that defies the notion that age is slowing the veteran down. “Crosby’s era-neutral 82-game pace by season tells the story of a relentless, adaptive athlete scoring at similar levels from his late 20s through late 30s,” the Adjusted Hockey founder explained. Pidutti also shared the stats across Sidney Crosby’s 20 NHL seasons.

With 1835 points in 1411 games, the graph shows that throughout the last decade, the Canadian hockey legend has kept an adjusted point pace of 107. Despite Father Time playing his tricks, the Pittsburgh Penguins icon has continued to score goals and points at a steady pace since his late 20s. In fact, just last season, he went past Wayne Gretzky and secured his 20th consecutive point-per-game season. So, while you may see the ‘age is just a number’ phrase pop up too many times, this is one instance where it seems justified.

With that out of the way, there’s one final reason why rumors of Sidney Crosby leaving the Penguins persist, and that’s Evgeni Malkin. He is only behind Crosby and Lemieux on the all-time points tally. However, all sources point to Malkin leaving the Penguins after his contract expires at the end of next season. Insiders like Greg Wyshynski believe that Malkin’s departure may push Crosby to leave as well, but that’s just speculation. Yet, what do you believe? Let us know in the comments.