The Pittsburgh Penguins are facing critical hours ahead of the 2025-26 NHL season. With Evgeni Malkin entering his final year in the Steel City, many point at Sidney Crosby, who wish to end their careers on a winning note. In that regard, the Pens don’t have much to offer ‘Sid the Kid’, but an insider has recently hinted at what could actually convince Crosby of staying in town.
As reports have hinted all offseason long, the Penguins are the only NHL team which is not looking to get better. Instead, Pittsburgh is embracing the rebuild, as painful as it might be to openly admit it.
The Penguins are actively shopping players like Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell, with Erik Karlsson being in the mix, as well. The star defenseman is reportedly in talks with the Detroit Red Wings. This scenario poses a deflating situation for veterans like Crosby and Malkin, who are hoping to go in one last run at the Stanley Cup. However, it seems that won’t happen in the City of Bridges anytime soon.
Rumors are growing louder around Crosby and the Penguins, with nearly every NHL team reportedly willing to acquire the veteran star if he becomes available. Crosby is said to be growing frustrated by the speculation, but according to one insider, there’s a shocking way the Pens could keep their captain in town. Tanking might actually be the answer.
“We all pretty much figure that Crosby’s out after Malkin’s out, which is after next season,” Greg Wyshynski said during an appearance on The Sheet podcast. “But what if you have [projected first overall pick in 2026] Gavin McKenna there? Would that increase the chances of Sid sticking around and retiring as a Penguin?“
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Only way is down
Obviously, no team in the NHL will ever admit to tanking in hopes of landing a lottery draft pick. It’s a tough sell to the players—how can a head coach walk into the locker room and tell his team to lose board battles, leave checks unfinished, and not go the extra mile? The thought alone seems almost laughable.
Still, it happens. One way or another, teams accept their fate and don’t seem to play as hard as they could, knowing that finishing at the bottom of the standings could land them a generational talent. Gavin McKenna is as elite as any NHL prospect has looked in the last years. He sits among Crosby, Connor McDavid, and Connor Bedard, in that regard. Dubbed the next best thing—landing McKenna would give Pittsburgh the perfect push to accelerate its rebuild.
Meant to be?
It feels too perfect a coincidence for the Penguins not to do anything in their power to draft McKenna. What can they do? Well, most importantly, they must lose—a lot. Obviously, the lottery draft will end up being decisive, but Pittsburgh can help its odds with a bad season.
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As Daily Faceoff’s Jason Gregor noted, the Penguins drafted Mario Lemieux in 1984. Twenty-one years later, in 2005, they selected Sidney Crosby with the No. 1 pick. Now, another 21 years will have passed by the time Gavin McKenna is projected to go first overall in 2026—and the Penguins could continue their tradition of landing franchise legends every 21 years.
