This is a scary but fun write up, cheers.

I’d say the only way Ray Shero allows a diva Brett-like deal to make it’s way down would have to be done like this. We would need a young and absolute star caliber centerman, say a Tavares, a Duchene, etc, plus a stop-gap centerman if that may not fit, plus, at the least, a first round pick in the following years draft, and possibly more first rounders and pieces if there are more players added to the mix like Gretzky’s trade.

I would also doubt, in this day and age, there would be as much uproar over a player leaving a team as there was with it being a player leaving his team and his country. A lot more was there with Gretzky, something that has me wanting to bust out a DVD on him someone gave me recently.

I like theorist stuff like this by the way. Just don’t see it being done, plus, if it did, being the magnitude of The Trade.

Again, I’m not saying that Crosby will ever demand a trade. This is just a post to try to get a good discussion going.

Understood. But this discussion is along the lines of “what if a comet smashes North America and takes out every single human being except you”. That is about as likely to happen as Crosby being traded.

Just to play the game though, you’d have to think it’d be a Western team that Pittsburgh would move Crosby/Malkin to. From there you’d have to expect some young players and a host of draft picks.

Won’t happen for at least 3-4 years since Crosby and Malkin have contracts and are obviously happy in Pittsburgh but it is an interesting thought in light of the Gretzky movie.

Luckily for the Penguins, with expenses tied to league-wide revenues and a new building to generate a great amount of revenue for themselves, Pittsburgh should never be in a Jagr, Kovalev, Straka situation where they have to basically sell off good players for nothing in return.

Then Mario would kick him out, call him a disgrace and wish him the best of luck on all of his endeavors, never to speak to him again.

Since players can’t be exchanged for cash anymore, I think the magnitude of the trade would have to compensate with draft picks and prospects on top of a proven NHLer or two. No way Sid go one-for-one in any trade.

Now, which team would he be demanding a trade to? Is that a consideration? If so, that could change things mucho.

…must include several 1st rounders, an NHLer or two, as well as 3 Stanley Cups!

I’ll play along.

First, where does he go to? Pitt would not be inclined to deal him to the East if they could avoid it, and most certainly not within the Atlantic. If demanding a trade, it is almost certain he wishes to play for a contender, or a team with sentimental value. It’s unlikely he goes to a team that is not on the radar nationally by virtue of location or prestige. (Nobody accuses the Kings of being a big deal, but LA is a much more compelling city than, say, Sunshine). Moreover, we can eliminate teams outside the NHL, since there’s no reason to believe he’d demand a trade to Europe or elsewhere.

Speaking on an NHL level, let’s eliminate some choices. We’ll start with the obvious nixes.. teams to be removed because they are not sufficiently large cities or successful enough to warrant a star player’s desire to be traded there:
EAST
Bruins
Sabres
Canadiens
Senators
Maple Leafs
Rangers
Devils
Flyers
Islanders
Capitals
Hurricanes
Thrashers
Lightning
Panthers

WEST
Blackhawks
Blue Jackets
Red Wings
Blues
Predators
Flames
Wild
Oilers
Avalanche
Stars
Sharks
Ducks
Kings
Canucks
Coyotes

The next step is to trim out locations that the Penguins would be averse to trading him. After all, it’s highly unlikely that a number of teams in the East, especially foes like Philly or Washington, would ever be considered in such a high-profile trade.

EAST
Bruins
Canadiens
Senators
Maple Leafs
Rangers
Devils
Flyers
Capitals

WEST
Blackhawks
Red Wings
Flames
Oilers
Sharks
Ducks
Kings
Canucks

This leaves us with 11 NHL franchises, including all six Canadian teams. As the nation’s favorite son, it can’t be overlooked that Crosby could, if he returned home, receive the equivalent of golden calf level worship. Those teams would be more willing to participate in an unbalanced trade to obtain him, one would think.

Of the five remaining American teams, the Bruins remain for a combination of historical prestige and large market, as do the Blackhawks. The Sharks, Ducks, and Kings remain as representative of California’s appeal. Two of those are strong clubs right now, and one is debatably on the rise. Los Angeles also has big-city appeal, and does not suffer from the in-division stigma that New York does.

Let’s toss out an example trade:

LOS ANGELES GETS:
Sidney Crosby

PITTSBURGH GETS:
Anze Kopitar
Teddy Purcell
Jack Johnson
1st round pick, 2011
1st round pick, 2013
3rd round pick, 2014