There's a dissident in the NHL ranks. Speaking to the British Columbia Chamber of Commerce recently, Vancouver GM Dave Nonis told his audience that overall he supports the new collective bargaining agreement, but the age at which players can become free agents under the agreement is a joke. Nonis specifically mentioned Pittsburgh star Sidney Crosby as an example. "Pittsburgh is going to put seven years of development money into him and he can leave when he's 25. I think if you assemble a good team, fans want to see that team stick together for more than one or two years. Our current agreement does not lend itself to that." Pittsburgh has more than one or two years. Crosby will have spent seven years in the league before he gains unrestricted free agency, which happens to be at age 25 because he is that rare kid who sticks in the NHL at age 18. Similar scenarios exist for talented Pittsburgh rookies Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal. Malkin turned 20 this summer and Staal turned 18 in September. Under the agreement, Crosby can become a restricted free agent after the 2007-08 season, and Malkin and Staal will follow after the 2008-09 campaign. The Penguins can retain them if they match offers from other teams. Losing any of them as restricted free agents would be costly, but it is up to the Penguins to put a product on the ice that sells enough tickets to keep players and encourages players to stick around. All teams face that challenge, and all of them are limited by the same salary cap. The Penguins have been compensated for poor finishes in the past, getting a chance to draft impact players who they have deemed fit to play as teenagers, and with that comes risk. Spending money wisely and putting a competitive team on the ice should guarantee enough income and incentive to have core players stick around far longer than just a few years.