Penguins' Sidney Crosby Moves Closer to Passing Mario Lemieux

A major Pittsburgh Penguins milestone is approaching as a long-standing franchise record inches closer to falling, turning every point into must-watch history.

Jun 12, 2016; San Jose, CA, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby (87) hugs Mario Lemieux after defeating the San Jose Sharks in game six of the 2016 Stanley Cup Final at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Bennett/Pool Photo via Imagn Images | Pool Photo-Imagn Images

The Pittsburgh Penguins have played through so many milestones over the years that they almost feel routine. When your core has stayed together for nearly two decades — when you have Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang wearing the same colors for over two decades — history tends to follow you around. The numbers grow, the records fall, and suddenly you blink and realize you’ve been watching three Hall of Famers redefine what longevity looks like.

This season has been no different. Pittsburgh opened the year blazing hot with Crosby and Malkin leading the NHL in goals and assists, respectively. Then came the November slide — a stretch where details slipped, losses stacked, and head coach Dan Muse was forced to demand more from a group that knows exactly what its standard should be.

His message worked. The Penguins tightened up, sharpened their play, and pushed their way back into a rhythm.

Crosby’s Historic Numbers Against The Flyers

When we last left off, Crosby was exactly 10 points shy of passing Mario Lemieux for the most regular-season points in Penguins history — a mark that would also move him into eighth all-time on the NHL scoring list.

Earlier this year, he moved past Lemieux in total franchise points when combining regular season and playoffs, but the regular-season crown is the one that stands in the record books. It’s the benchmark used for generations, and it carries a different kind of permanence.

Last night against Vancouver, No. 87 moved ahead of No. 66 for a momentous milestone.

Sidney Crosby (1,896) passed Mario Lemieux (1,895) for the most total points (regular-season and playoffs) in Penguins history.@PensInsideScoop has more ⬇️ https://t.co/tgjyjMPiAe

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 22, 2025

Since hitting point No. 1,714 with a two-point night in Toronto, Crosby has played four more games and found the scoresheet in three of them. His biggest splash came in Philadelphia, where he scored a brace of goals to extend a dominance over the Flyers that borders on mythical.

Crosby now has 137 career points against Philadelphia — more than any player in NHL history — with Lemieux (124) and Jaromír Jágr (120) trailing behind. To put it in perspective: only 38 Flyers skaters ever have scored more goals at their home arena than Crosby’s 27. He is the NHL’s all-time leader in goals (58), assists (78), and points (136) against Philadelphia. Nobody has tortured that franchise more.

Including everyone to ever play for the Flyers, only 38 skaters in NHL history have more goals at Xfinity Mobile Arena (formerly Wells Fargo Center) than Sidney Crosby's 27. 🤯

Crosby is the NHL's all-time leader in goals (58), assists (78) and points (136) against the Flyers. pic.twitter.com/aqKQr3Y27n

— Penguins PR (@PenguinsPR) December 2, 2025

The Penguins then traveled south for a tight game in Tampa Bay. Crosby was held off the scoresheet, but Pittsburgh still escaped with a win after a controversial late-game review waved off what looked like a Lightning equalizer.

Two Eerily Similar and Painful Games for the Penguins

From there, they flew to Dallas to take on one of the most well-balanced and versatile teams in the league. Crosby set up Tommy Novak for a 2–1 lead in the second period, but Miro Heiskanen’s late slapshot goal with less than two minutes left in the game forced overtime. A scoreless extra frame led to a shootout — and another Penguins loss. It marked their seventh straight shootout defeat dating back to last season.

The heartbreak didn’t stop there. Back home against the Anaheim Ducks, Crosby once again set up Novak for the Penguins’ second goal of the game (video below). Anthony Mantha then scored to give Pittsburgh a 3–2 lead with only a few minutes remaining in the third.

TOMMY STAYS HOT 🔥

Novak has seven points (3G-4A) over his last five games. #UltraMoments pic.twitter.com/yTAgsV8iXN

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 10, 2025

Unfortunately, Ducks rookie Beckett Sennecke stunned the arena by slicing through three defenders and banking the puck off Erik Karlsson’s glove with 0.1 seconds left. It was so close that the final horn sounded, fooling many fans into thinking the game was over and forcing a review to determine whether the puck had crossed the line in time. Overtime came and went, the Penguins failed to convert on a lengthy power play, and once again, their shootout struggles continued with an eighth straight shootout loss.

The Final Stretch to Passing Lemieux

Still, Pittsburgh earned points in both games against two elite opponents. And after another productive week, Crosby now sits at 1,718 points, just five shy of tying Lemieux and six away from passing him on the NHL’s regular-season scoring list and becoming the Penguins’ franchise scoring leader. Lemieux reached 1,723 points in only 915 games — a pace that will NEVER be replicated — but Crosby’s climb is no less extraordinary.

What comes next is a moment fans once thought impossible. Passing Lemieux won’t rewrite history, but it will solidify Crosby’s place alongside his mentor as the greatest player the franchise has ever known. And the way he’s still producing, still driving games, still lifting the Penguins every night, it feels like there’s plenty more history left to chase.

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