Penguins’ Sidney Crosby gets LeBron, Brady comps from Wayne Gretzky

Wayne Gretzky is in full support of Sidney Crosby playing as long as he wants, even if his skills severely diminish.

Gretzky, the greatest hockey player of all time, was Crosby’s current age (38) when he retired in 1999. And while he was far from a bad player at the time of his retirement, his final season is considered his worst: He scored just nine goals and 62 points in 70 games, making it the only year of his career in which he did not average at least a point per game.

Even so, Gretzky seemed reluctant at the time to give it up, which makes even more sense why he believes Crosby shouldn’t feel the need to retire before he is good and ready to do so.

“He wants to continue. And listen, he’s our Tom Brady; he’s our LeBron James — a guy that can still play, bring it at an older age. [We have to] face facts: He’s not 18 anymore. He’s getting older. … But Sid’s remarkable. He’s going to play – I say the same thing: You play as long as you want to play. Make them tear that jersey off you. Because once you quit, it’s all done, right? People say to me all the time, ‘You miss the game?’ I’m like, ‘Of course I miss the game!’ The problem is I can’t play the game anymore. If I could play, I’d be out there, trust me.”

"Sidney Crosby is our Tom Brady and our LeBron James..

I was on the ice with him when he was 14 years old and I could see how good he was then..

He should play for as long as he wants to play"@WayneGretzky #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/J1ICXJW28Q

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) May 21, 2026

Crosby has played all 21 seasons of his career (so far) with the Pittsburgh Penguins. In that time, ‘the Kid’ is a three-time Stanley Cup champion, two-time Hart Memorial Trophy winner, and 10-time All-Star. Additionally, he has scored 654 goals and 1,761 points in the regular season, and another 72 goals and 206 points in the postseason.

The post Penguins’ Sidney Crosby gets LeBron, Brady comps from Wayne Gretzky appeared first on ClutchPoints.