Crosby’s Concussion Clouds Pens Future

Okay, this Sidney Crosby concussion problem is officially scary business.

I first discussed my concerns over Crosby’s cranium the week before the Super Bowl. At the time I felt that Penguin fans and the Pittsburgh media were soft peddling a potentially serious concern.

http://habersp0rtsblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/crosbys-concussion-overshadows-steelers.html

Two months later I argued my case that Sid should not play again in the 2010-11 season; even though his absence was the knockout blow to the team’s championship hopes.

http://habersp0rtsblog.blogspot.com/2011/03/short-term-pain-for-long-term-gain.html

Well here we are nearly eight months beyond Crosby’s unfortunate collision with Victor Hedman and the Penguins’ current savior is still having concussion issues. It goes beyond stating the obvious that this is a significant concern.

Let me start off by saying my position today is no different than it was last March. Simply stated, under no circumstances should Sidney Crosby appear in an NHL game until he is 100% symptom free, and for a measurable period of time. If this means Crosby is off the ice until calendar 2012, so be it. If it means he pulls a Peter Forsberg and plays only in the playoffs (assuming the Pens make it without him), so be it. If it means he misses the entire season…GULP…well you get the point.

This is not Aaron Asham we are talking about. Sidney Crosby is the franchise, plain and simple. It may sound callous and cold but life will go on at the Energy Barn if Asham suffers another concussion. Another blow to Crosby could derail the Penguin franchise for years.

Consider the long-term implications which have been overshadowed by the short-term concerns about his health and return. Crosby has two years left on his current five year contract. Sometime before that expires, the Penguins are going to have to extend him his next deal. I have no idea what it will be but a reasonable estimate starts at 7 years, $70 Million. If Sid is healthy and dominating the game, as he is uniquely cable of doing, that’s a bargain price.

Imagine however if Sid signs that contract and then spends those seven years missing 20 or more games per year because of concussions. Imagine if his effectiveness slowly wanes a la Eric Lindros turning him from league poster child to marginal offensive player; at $10 million per annum. Can you imagine the damage that would do to the franchise?

And it’s a frighteningly realistic scenario; one that we endured throughout the 1990s with Mario Lemieux’s back (and other assorted ailments). I will go to my grave believing that a healthy Lemieux in 1993 equals an easy run to a third consecutive cup. You’ll never convince me that injury and fatigue did not weigh him down in that post season. Who knows how many cups Mario would have lifted if not for his frequent injury sabbaticals.

Right now I have concerns that Sid’s head may become Mario’s back of the 2010s. That’s bad enough at face value; even worse when you consider the financial impact overall and against the cap. Which means the Penguins have to consider what was once incomprehensible; trading Sidney Crosby before his contract expires.

I’ll give you a moment to process that before you projectile vomit.

Such an idea was utter blasphemy before January 1, 2011. Eight months and two concussions later it’s a realistic consideration. Simply put, if the Penguins’ organization determines that it can not manage the risk of Sid’s health and an eight figure, long-term contract, they must deal him; and they must do so before its too late.

For the record, the Steelers may very well have the same dilemma with Troy Polamalu in the summer of 2013, which a subject for another blog.

To be clear, I’m not talking about the Jaromir Jagr and Alexie Kovalev yard sale frauds that Craig Patrick perpetrated in the early 2000s. I’m talking about a legitimate return of top players and prospects to support an otherwise solid nucleus. You simply cannot allow Sidney Crosby to walk out of the Burgh for nothing when his contract expires; voluntarily or due to injury concerns. That scenario is as damaging to the Pens as the one I described above.

Of course trading Crosby is the nuclear option. It goes without saying that I hope it NEVER comes to pass. We all watched Crosby’s “Lemieux-like” dominance last season and we all want that to continue for another decade plus. Before the winter classic, there was little reason to doubt that it would.

The Pens are legitimate cup contenders pretty much any year a healthy Crosby is in their line-up. Sid the Kid is that rare franchise superstar who combines top shelf talent with a Michael Jordan like drive to dominate and win. I have very high expectations for a rejuvenated and focused Evgeni Malkin this season but let’s be honest; Geno does not have Sid’s singular focus and six sigma drive to improve. Few athletes do. Few humans do.

Which means the Penguins’ primary objective is to get Crosby healthy, no matter how long it takes. We want Crosby to take the Patrice Bergeron path to returning; not the Marc Savard, Eric Lindros, Paul Kariya path. I never much cared for Lindros but the concussion based demolition of his career was truly unfortunate. It was predicated in large part by the refusal of both he and his employer to recognize and address the severity of his injury. For Crosby’s career to follow that path to ruin would be, strictly in a sports sense, a tragedy.

It is critical the Penguins do everything possible to prevent that, including obstructing Sid’s return if they do not believe he’s ready. Given the propensity of hockey players to ignore pain and injury that may be easier said than done. I doubt for example that Lemieux’s doctors gleefully endorsed the idea of him returning to the line-up the day of his last cancer treatment in 1993.

That does not absolve the Penguins of their responsibility to protect their most important asset, even if it means another lost season. The Penguins can make the playoffs without Sid, given a return to health and dominance of Malkin, but they cannot win the Cup without him. That’s a harsh reality but it’s a small price to pay if it ultimately leads to another decade of Crosby dominance in the Burgh.

The question is where do they draw the line. At what point does this issue become serious enough for the team to consider the nuclear option? At what point is the best player of this era more valuable for his trade value than his on ice contribution? Lest you scoff at this notion remember that none other than Wayne Gretzky was traded in his prime. The Gretzky deal was never about improving the Edmonton Oilers; it was the best attempt to salvage an untenable financial situation.

And for the record, Edmonton won a cup without Gretzky; in part due to the players they received in that deal. They remained competitive for several more years even while playing at a significant financial disadvantage.

None of which should be interpreted as my endorsement of the nuclear option. I remain staunchly vested in the Crosby full recovery option, uncertainty and all. My belief will be even stronger if the NHL makes a sincere effort to eliminate headshots; rather than continuing its Neanderthal view of the issue. The league’s insistence on impotent punishments for head shots last year was nothing less than a tacit endorsement of the resulting carnage.

In the end however it’s not about me or any other Penguin fan. It’s about the organization balancing the implicit uncertainty of a brain injury with the financial realities of modern sports. It’s about understanding how tenuous an athletic career can be, even for a dominant superstar. It’s about accepting what nine months ago was unfathomable, trading the superstar who resuscitated the franchise when he arrived in 2005.

I truly hope it never comes to that. Right now there are no guarantees.