Mario Lemieux on report of rift with Sidney Crosby: ‘It’s silly’

Mario Lemieux dismissed a report saying there is a rift between him and Sidney Crosby.

SiriusXM NHL Network’s Matthew Barnaby said on the radio Tuesday that as he looked into what’s wrong with Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins, he was told there was a falling out between Lemieux and Crosby.

“But the more and more I looked into it, the more I found out, people with the same sentiments that there’s a big falling out between Mario and Crosby. Now whether that pushes them to move him at some point? Whether he wants to move? That I don’t know,” Barnaby said.

Barnaby said he has heard the issues between the team’s star player and co-owner are over coaching and when the team lost after the ’14 playoffs.

In comments released through the Penguins’ Twitter account, Lemieux dismissed the report by saying it’s silly.

Mario Lemieux on rumored 'rift' with Sidney Crosby: "It's absolutely not true. It's silly."

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) November 25, 2015

Lemieux and Crosby have a long-standing relationship going back to when the youngster was drafted by the team in 2005. Lemieux took Crosby under his wing and had him stay at his home. Maybe 10 years later, some distance has grown between them.

Below are Barnaby’s comments.

H/T SportsNet