Today on the seventh day of the eighth month, it’s Sidney Crosby‘s birthday. There’s always reason to celebrate one of the greatest hockey players of all time.
Earlier in the summer we took a look at some of the best age-39 seasons ever. Despite injury, Crosby maintained one of the best age-38 seasons in NHL history last year with 74 points in 68 games in 2025-26. There could be some survivorship aspects going on, but the good news is that there historically hasn’t been as much of a drop-off for hockey players going from 38 to 39 as much as the usually big drop going from 37 to 38.
What’s next for Sid? The future looks to be whatever he wants it to be.
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As of March, Crosby will have been the captain of the Penguins for 50% of his entire life. That will come with another NHL record, 2026-27 will be the 20th season for Crosby as captain of the Pens, surpassing Steve Yzerman’s 19 playing seasons with Detroit. If you give credit for time served, Yzerman (who missed one season due to the lockout) was the Red Wings captain for 19 years and six months, Crozby will pass that this year as well.
There’s more history sure to follow. Crosby is at 1,761 points in his career, 39 points away from 1,800. Reaching that mark would make him just the fifth player in NHL history to get to 1,800 career points, the first since Jaromir Jagr got the milestone during the 2014–15 season. Getting to 1,800 would also mean passing Marcel Dionne (1,771) and Ron Francis (1,798) along the way. Up next would be the chase of another legend known for a long career, Gordie Howe (1,850).
Overall Crosby is 160 points behind Jagr (1,921) for second place all-time in NHL scoring. Should Sid play two more years, he just might be able to get there. If he decides to play three more seasons, it could be a lock that Crosby will end up with the most points in NHL history besides Wayne Gretzky.
As Crosby told Josh Yohe in Switzerland this spring at the World Championships, stepping away from the game isn’t in his mind.
“I’m saying year to year based on contracts,” he explained. “It just seems to make sense. I mean, it could change. We’ll see. Kyle (Dubas) and I haven’t even talked about it. But I’ll talk with Pat (Brisson) and Kyle later this summer. We’ll talk about it and do what makes sense. If it does make sense to sign for a couple of years, then we’ll do that.”
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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.”
Any team would be lucky to have Crosby, even at an advanced age. Luckily for the Penguins, it’s still an easy decision to hold onto a player that’s woven into the very fabric of the franchise at this point.
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At now 39 years old, the end is closer than the beginning for Crosby’s playing days. On this day, like all days, it’s a celebration of greatness to witness a master still so sharp at his craft.
