Insider suggests that the Pens could move Crosby to the Avalanche under the right circumstances

Let the Penguins rumours and speculation begin. With the Pens having hired Ron Hextall and Brian Burke as the GM and President of Hockey Ops this week, I suspect we're going to see their first footprint in the sand sooner than later.

On Thursday, TSN's Darren Dreger made a very intriguing case for the Pens moving Sidney Crosby to kickstart a rebuild in the Steel City.

Now, first - I want to make it clear that I do not see this happening. Sid has spent his entire career in Pittsburgh, winning three Stanley Cups with the organization and has been the main bright spot in the city since Mario Lemieux's retirement and the departure of Jaromir Jagr. If ever there was a candidate to play his whole career in Pittsburgh and retire as a Penguin, it would be Crosby.

Second, Brian Burke has made it clear for a number of years that had the lottery balls come down differently, he would have had Crosby in Anaheim, recently celebrating the fact that he has him now. I cannot imagine a scenario in which Burke immediately moves a player he has coveted for the majority of his career as an executive.

That said, Dreger identified the conclusion of this season as a pivotal point in how to approach a potential rebuild in Pittsburgh. Should the Pens qualify for the playoffs, Dreger comments that for the majority of people, the scenario becomes about how to collect the right compliment of players to help Crosby win the Stanley Cup in the next 2-3 years.

However, Dreger continued, if the Pens happen to miss the playoffs this season, that could change the plan drastically moving forward.

"If the Pittsburgh Penguins were to miss the playoffs this year, I think it's a real tough conversation for Ron Hextall, Brian Burke and Crosby & company in the offseason," Dreger stated.

"And it wouldn't shock me at all if Sid said 'look, I want my legacy to be that you collected the pieces, based on moving me to the Colorado Avalanche or the New York Rangers (or whatever the team is) that are really going to jumpstart a rebuild to make this team a contender here in the next five years'," he continued, adding that he felt that Colorado makes a lot of sense.

That ranks up there with the hottest takes in recent memory, in my opinion - but that doesn't necessarily mean that Dreger is wrong.

As an example, if the Pens were able to pry a few players like Bowen Byram, Pavel Francouz, Alex Newhook, Martin Kaut, Justin Barron or Shane Bowers in some combination, along with the right mix of picks from the Avs in a package that sent Crosby and some balancing pieces to Colorado to try and win a cup with close friend Nathan MacKinnon, it would make the deal much more palatable from a Pens perspective.

It's all just pure conjecture at this point, but it is definitely an intriguing situation, and has the potential to become a reality if the right set of circumstances were to present themselves. However unlikely, this sort of deal does have the potential to change the landscape of the NHL in a big way.

MUST READ

1 hour ago  |  By TJ Tucker Columbus Blue Jackets Head Coach Blasts Officials After Loss to the Montreal Canadiens Last Night

13 hours ago  |  By Tom Banks Several Teams Likely No Longer Pursuing Chris Kreider After Stunning Statement From Him in New Interview

16 hours ago  |  By Daniel Lucente Negotiations Reportedly Underway With the NFL's Washington Commanders for a Return to Controversial Logo

17 hours ago  |  By Daniel Lucente St. Louis NHL Hopeful Colin Brown Tragically Passes Away at 16 After Succumbing to Injuries From Violent Crime

18 hours ago  |  By Tom Banks Identities of the Men Who Attacked Paul Bissonnette Exposed: More Disgusting Crimes Come to Light

21 hours ago  |  By Tom Banks Nashville Predators and Chicago Blackhawks Make Trade Involving Young Forward

23 hours ago  |  By TJ Tucker Robin Lehner Dropped by His Bankruptcy Lawyers: Has Not Been Heard From in Several Months

Nov 27  |  By Julien Trekker Montreal Canadiens' Patrik Laine Suffers Loss of Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars in Disaster Condo Purchase

MORE STORIES