Minor hockey Early in his
minor hockey years, Crosby began attracting media attention for his play and gave his first newspaper interview at age seven. When Crosby was 13, Nova Scotia's Minor Hockey Council refused to allow him to play midget, a level of minor hockey designated for 15- to 17-year-olds. His family sued but lost. The following year, he entered the midget level with the triple-A Dartmouth Subways and went on to score a combined 217 regular season and playoff points, leading Dartmouth to a second-place finish at the
2002 Air Canada Cup. He was named the MVP and Top Scorer awards at the national tournament at the tournament banquet held after the preliminary round and he finished the tournament with 24 points (11 goals and 13 assists) in 7 games. Crosby was called up as a 14-year-old to play two games with the
Maritime Junior A Hockey League's
Truro Bearcats that season. Crosby had been drafted by the Bearcats in the 2001 MJAHL Draft as a 13-year-old. During his midget season, Crosby appeared on the
CBC's
Hockey Day in Canada telecast. Due to this treatment, he elected to play for the American hockey program at Shattuck-Saint Mary's Boarding School, Minnesota for the 2002–03 hockey season. In his first regular season game in the QMJHL, he scored one goal and added two assists. He was named QMJHL Player of the Week for two consecutive weeks at the start of the season and won the honour four more times as the season progressed. He was named QMJHL Player of the Month and
Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Player of the Week three times each. Crosby finished his rookie QMJHL season with 54 goals and 81 assists over 59 games to capture the
Jean Béliveau Trophy as the league's leading point-scorer. He was further recognized with the RDS/JVC Trophy (overall rookie of the year) and
Michel Brière Memorial Trophy (most valuable player), becoming the first QMJHL player to win all three major awards at once. During the off-season, the
World Hockey Association, a major professional league proposed to rival the NHL, held an entry draft on July 17, 2004. Holding the first overall selection, Toronto chose Crosby. The following month, it was reported that Crosby turned down a million contract over three years to play for Hamilton. Crosby told reporters that while "it took a lot to say no to that much money", he "work[ed] hard most of his life to play in the NHL". The contract would have paid him million annually and an additional million payout regardless of whether the WHA was realized as a legitimate league or not. However, it was not clarified how Hamilton could have signed Crosby, as Toronto held his WHA playing rights. Nevertheless, the WHA never materialized. Returning to the Océanic for the
2004–05 season, Crosby continued dominating the league, leading the league with 66 goals, 102 assists and 168 points over 62 games to capture his second consecutive Beliveau Trophy. Joining Crosby on Rimouski's top line were wingers
Dany Roussin and
Marc-Antoine Pouliot, who finished second and third in league-scoring with 116 and 114 points respectively. In addition to his scoring title, Crosby was once again awarded Most Valuable Player, Offensive Player and Personality of the Year, while repeating as a QMJHL First All-Star. The Océanic finished the regular season with the
best record in the league, registering 45 wins and 98 points, including a league record-setting 28-game undefeated streak. They went on to capture the President's Cup as QMJHL playoff champions, defeating the
Halifax Mooseheads in the finals. Crosby led the playoffs with 31 points (14 goals and 17 assists) over 13 games, earning him the
Guy Lafleur Trophy as postseason MVP. With their QMJHL championship, the Océanic qualified for the
2005 Memorial Cup, Canada's national major junior tournament. Meeting the
London Knights in the final, the Océanic were shut-out 4–0. Despite the loss, Crosby was named to the Tournament All-Star team and captured the
Ed Chynoweth Trophy as the competition's leading scorer with 11 points (six goals and five assists) over five games. Knights forward
Corey Perry was awarded the
Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy as the MVP. Soon after, he attended the NHL prospect combine in preparation for the
2005 NHL entry draft. The Rimouski Océanic
retired jersey number 87 in Crosby's honor in September 2019, and the QMJHL also retired the number for all of its teams.
Pittsburgh Penguins (2005–present) Rise to superstardom (2005–2007) Entering the 2005 NHL entry draft, Crosby was listed first overall in the
NHL Central Scouting Bureau and International Scouting Services' respective rankings of prospects. He also won the
Mike Bossy Trophy as the QMJHL's best prospect. Crosby was selected first overall in the draft by the
Pittsburgh Penguins on July 30, 2005. Due to the
labour lockout that suspended the entire
2004–05 NHL season, positioning for the 2005 draft was conducted via a weighted lottery based on each team's playoff appearances and draft lottery victories in the last four years. This lottery system led to the draft being popularly referred to as the "Sidney Crosby Lottery" or the "Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes". "Sid the Kid", a nickname given to him by the media early in his career, made his NHL debut on October 5, 2005, against the
New Jersey Devils, and registered an assist on the team's first goal of the season, scored by
Mark Recchi in a 5–1 loss. He scored his first NHL goal in the Penguins' home opener on October 8 against goaltender
Hannu Toivonen of the
Boston Bruins. Despite having registered two assists for a three-point night, the Penguins were defeated 7–6 in
overtime. Crosby began his rookie season playing alongside
Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux, though Lemieux was forced to retire due to an
irregular heartbeat after having played just 26 games into the season. Near the midway point of the season, Penguins head coach
Ed Olczyk was fired and replaced by
Michel Therrien on December 15, 2005. The following day, Therrien designated Crosby as an alternate captain for the Penguins. The move drew criticism from some hockey pundits, including commentator
Don Cherry, who claimed that Crosby did not have the experience for the position. Cherry said, "An 18-year-old kid says he's going to give us ideas. What, from the Quebec League, he's going to give them ideas? Come on. That's ridiculous." Although hopes were high in Pittsburgh for the club to succeed, largely in part to the beginning of Crosby's NHL career and bolstered by the acquisitions of
Sergei Gonchar,
Žigmund Pálffy, and Mark Recchi, the Penguins still finished with the worst record in the
Eastern Conference with only 22 wins and 58 points, just one point better than
St. Louis Blues in the
Western Conference. Nevertheless, Crosby's first NHL campaign was a personal success as he established franchise records in assists (63) and points (102) for a rookie, both of which were previously held by Mario Lemieux. He also scored 39 goals and became the youngest player in NHL history to score 100 points in a single season, and only the seventh rookie ever to hit the benchmark. Overall, Crosby finished sixth in the NHL scoring race and seventh in the NHL in assists. Among Canadian NHL players, he trailed only
Joe Thornton and
Dany Heatley. Throughout the season, Crosby had battled with
Washington Capitals winger and
2004 first-overall pick
Alexander Ovechkin for the rookie scoring lead. He finished second to Ovechkin's 106 points and also lost to the Capitals forward for the
Calder Memorial Trophy as NHL rookie of the year. It marked the start of a rivalry that would help "define the league" for over a decade. Throughout his first season, Crosby was accused by opposing players and coaches of taking dives and complaining to officials, which was typically attributed to his youth. He became the first rookie to earn 100 penalty minutes and 100 points in the same season, which magnified his reputation for complaining to NHL officials. His success against the Flyers continued as just over six weeks later, on December 13, he recorded the first six-point game of his career (one goal and five assists). The multi-point effort vaulted Crosby into the NHL scoring lead, which he would retain for the remainder of the season. He finished the
2006–07 with 36 goals and 84 assists for 120 points in 79 games to become the first teenager to lead the NHL in scoring since Wayne Gretzky in
1980. Being only 19 years old at the time, he became the youngest player in NHL history to win the
Art Ross Trophy and the youngest scoring champion in any major North American professional sport. Crosby's second NHL season also saw significant improvements for the Penguins franchise as a whole, as the emergence of rookie forwards, eventual Calder Trophy-winner
Evgeni Malkin and runner-up
Jordan Staal complemented the club's offence. As a result, the Penguins jumped from last place in the Eastern Conference the previous season to fifth for the club's first playoff appearance since
2001. Playing the
Ottawa Senators in the opening round, Crosby scored a goal in his
Stanley Cup playoff debut in a 6–3 loss. He finished the series with five points in all five games as the Penguins were ousted in a 4–1 by the eventual
Stanley Cup runner-up.
Beginning of Penguins captaincy, runner–up and first Stanley Cup title (2007–2009) Crosby was named Pittsburgh's
team captain on May 31, 2007, making him (at 19 years, 9 months, and 24 days) the youngest team captain in NHL history. During the season, the Penguins offered him the captaincy, but he turned it down. In the press conference naming him the team captain, he explained: "I just thought it wasn't right for me. As a team, we were playing great and you don't want to disrupt things like that. Individually, I was not ready to accept that responsibility quite yet. Going through the playoffs and having that experience has probably given me more confidence. I understand there is going to be a lot more responsibility on my shoulders with this, but it's something I'm ready for, I feel very comfortable with it and I'm just excited to get things going." At the NHL's annual awards show two weeks later in June 2007, Crosby completed a rare off-season "hat-trick", winning the
Hart Memorial Trophy and the
Lester B. Pearson Award in addition to his previously clinched Art Ross Trophy. He became the youngest player in NHL history to win the Lester B. Pearson, and only the second youngest player ever to win the Hart (after Gretzky). He became the youngest player ever to be named to the
NHL's first All-Star team. With Crosby's initial three-year, entry-level contract set to expire at the end of the following season, the Penguins signed him to a five-year, $43.5 million contract extension on July 10, 2007, ensuring his stay with the Penguins through the 2012–13 season. Midway through the
subsequent season, Crosby recorded a
Gordie Howe hat-trick on December 20 in a game against the Boston Bruins. His first assist came 55 seconds into the first period. At 8:26 of the same period, Crosby scored to give the Penguins a 2–0 lead. Then, five minutes and nine seconds into the second frame, Crosby fought ex-Penguin defenceman
Andrew Ference to complete the hat-trick. This was Crosby's first NHL fight. In the NHL's first
Winter Classic (with a record crowd of 71,217 fans in attendance), Crosby scored the shootout winner in heavy snowfall to defeat the
Buffalo Sabres. However, two and a half weeks later, on January 18, 2008, Crosby suffered a high ankle sprain crashing leg-first into the boards in a game against the
Tampa Bay Lightning. As a result, he missed the
2008 All-Star Game, to which he was named a starter. After missing 21 games, he returned on March 4 against the Tampa Bay Lightning and earned an assist on a
Max Talbot goal. However, two games after his return, he felt his ankle was not up to shape and decided that he needed more time for it to heal. Crosby consequently sat out of the Penguins' next seven games and returned on March 27, 2008, to help the Penguins defeat the
New York Islanders 3–1. Despite his injury-shortened campaign, Crosby still managed 72 points (24 goals, 48 assists) in just 53 games. Crosby's absence from the Penguins' line-up served as a stepping stone for teammate Evgeni Malkin, who, now in his second season, was developing into a superstar in his own right. Picking up the offensive slack, Malkin finished second in league scoring to Washington Capitals winger Alexander Ovechkin and was also a Hart Memorial Trophy nominee as MVP honours also went to Ovechkin. In addition to Crosby's return to the line-up late in the season, the Penguins acquired star winger
Marián Hossa from the
Atlanta Thrashers at the trade deadline, placing the club in a strong position to make a deep playoff run. Pittsburgh finished the season as
Atlantic Division champions and just two points shy of the first-seeded Montreal Canadiens. In a rematch of the previous year's opening round, the Penguins began the
2008 playoffs facing the Ottawa Senators, whom they quickly swept in four games. After then defeating the
New York Rangers and
archrival Philadelphia Flyers, each in five games, the Penguins reached the
final round for the first time since
1992, to face the
Detroit Red Wings. After being shut-out as a team for the first two games of the series, Crosby scored the first two goals of game three as the series shifted to
Pittsburgh to fuel a 3–2 win. The Penguins lost the next game and despite staving off defeat in game five, they were overcome by the Red Wings in six games. Crosby finished the playoffs with 27 points (six goals and 21 assists in all 20 games), tying forward and
Conn Smythe-winner
Henrik Zetterberg (13 goals and 14 assists in 22 games) for the playoff scoring lead. and
Bill Guerin in game six of the
2009 Stanley Cup Final Early in the
following season, on October 18, 2008, Crosby scored one goal and three assists against the
Toronto Maple Leafs to surpass benchmarks of 100 goals, 200 assists, and 300 points for his career. On the play in which Crosby scored, teammate Evgeni Malkin assisted to record his own 200th point. As a result, Crosby had a team trainer cut the puck in half so both players could commemorate the achievement. Minor injury troubles kept Crosby from five games early in the season as he was listed day-to-day, but he was, for the most part, able to bounce back from the previous injury-riddled season and stay healthy. He recorded 33 goals and 70 assists for 103 points to finish third in league scoring, as Evgeni Malkin captured his first career Art Ross Trophy. Entering the
2009 playoffs as the defending
Prince of Wales Trophy winners, the Penguins defeated the Philadelphia Flyers in the opening round before meeting the Washington Capitals for a highly publicized second-round matchup. The series was heavily followed as it pitted Ovechkin of the Capitals against both Crosby and Malkin, who together finished as the league's top three scorers that season. In the second game, Crosby and Ovechkin recorded matching three-goal efforts for their first career playoff hat-tricks in a 4–3 Capitals victory. Despite being down 2–0 in the series, Crosby and the Penguins won the next three games and eventually defeated the Capitals in a seventh and deciding game, in which Crosby added another two goals. Following a sweep of the
Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference finals, Crosby opted against recent NHL tradition and picked up the Prince of Wales Trophy, which he had left untouched the previous year. In explanation of the change of heart, Crosby said, "We didn't touch the trophy last year, and obviously we didn't have the result we wanted ... Although we haven't accomplished exactly what we want ... we can still enjoy it." The Penguins met the Detroit Red Wings for the second straight year in the
Stanley Cup Final, and this time Crosby won his first Stanley Cup title in seven games. At 21 years, 10 months, and 5 days, Crosby became the youngest NHL captain to win the Stanley Cup since 1895. (The youngest captain to lead his team to the Stanley Cup in the history of the trophy is
Mike Grant of the
1895 Montreal Victorias, who was 21 years and 2 months at the time.) In the deciding game seven, Crosby was forced to watch all but 32 seconds of the third period from the bench after suffering a knee injury less than halfway through the second period due to a hit from Wings' winger
Johan Franzén. Following the game, Crosby was criticized by Detroit centre
Kris Draper for neglecting to shake hands with some of Detroit's players in the handshake line, most notably Wings' defenceman and captain
Nicklas Lidström. An irate Draper was quoted as saying, "Nick was waiting and waiting, and Crosby didn't come over to shake his hand. That's ridiculous, especially as their captain." Crosby replied afterward, saying, "I just won the Stanley Cup. I think I have the right to celebrate with my teammates. I know it's not easy waiting around... I understand if they don't feel like waiting around. But you know what? It's the easiest thing to do in the world, to shake hands after you win. I had no intentions of trying to skip guys and not shake their hands. I think that was a pretty unreasonable comment." (left) and the Stanley Cup during the Penguins victory parade. By winning the Stanley Cup in
2009, Crosby became the youngest NHL captain to have his name engraved on the Stanley Cup.
Injury–plagued years, back-to-back Stanley Cups and Conn Smythe Trophies (2009–2018) In the
2009–10 season, Crosby tied Tampa Bay Lightning centre
Steven Stamkos for the lead in goals scored, with 51 goals each, both earning the
Rocket Richard Trophy. He also garnered 58 assists for a total of 109 points, enough to tie with Washington Capitals winger and captain Alexander Ovechkin for second in league points, trailing only
Vancouver Canucks' centre
Henrik Sedin's, who ended the season with 112. Crosby was also named a finalist for the Hart Memorial Trophy and
Ted Lindsay Award. Crosby won the
Mark Messier Leadership Award, getting recognized as a "superior leader within the sport, setting a positive example through on-ice performance, motivation of team members and a dedication to the community". This was the second time he had received this honour, the other being in January 2007, during the award's first year when it was presented monthly. He was also included on NHL's all-decade second team of 2000s. Crosby's defending Stanley Cup champion and fourth-seeded Penguins were defeated in the second round of the
2010 playoffs, losing to the Montreal Canadiens in seven games, unable to build onto an initial 3–2 series lead. Crosby had 19 points (six goals, 13 assists) in all 13 games in the 2010 playoffs, though through seven games against the Canadiens, he had only one goal and four assists. Game seven was also the last game to be played at
Mellon Arena, the Penguins' home rink since the start of the franchise. On July 27, 2010, Crosby joined his mentor from 2005 to 2006, his rookie year Mario Lemieux to be the first to skate on the new ice at the
Consol Energy Center. The two skated for about five minutes before being joined on the ice by a group of young hockey fans all wearing Lemieux's 66 or Crosby's 87 jerseys. In the
2010–11 season, Crosby had a 25-game point streak, which began on November 5, 2010, against the
Anaheim Ducks and ended on December 28, 2010, against the New York Islanders. During this streak, he had 27 goals (including three hat-tricks) and 24 assists for 51 points. This streak was tied for 11th-longest point streak in NHL history. During this streak, Crosby scored his 200th NHL goal in a 4–1 win over the
Calgary Flames on Flames' goaltender
Miikka Kiprusoff on November 27 and he was named First Star of the Month in both November and December, respectively. On January 3, 2011, Crosby was selected as a
2011 All-Star, along with teammates Evgeni Malkin,
Marc-André Fleury and
Kris Letang. However, neither Crosby nor Malkin were available to play in the All-Star Game due to injuries, and rookie
Jeff Skinner (along with
Paul Stastny) were named as replacements. In consecutive games – the
2011 NHL Winter Classic on January 1, 2011, against the Washington Capitals and then January 5 against the Tampa Bay Lightning – Crosby suffered hits to his head from
Dave Steckel and
Victor Hedman respectively. After experiencing several
concussion symptoms, Crosby did not return for the rest of the season, including the
2011 playoffs, where the fourth-seeded Penguins would lose in seven games in the first round coincidentally to the Lightning, who finished as the fifth seed and surrendered a 3–1 series lead in the process. The Penguins were further crippled when Malkin suffered a
torn ACL and
MCL on February 4, taking him out for the rest of the season and leaving the Penguins without their two highest-scoring players. Despite Crosby's injury and subsequent absence for the final 41 games of the season, he finished as the Penguins' leading scorer. His 66 points in 41 games were 16 points ahead of the second-highest team scorer, defenceman Kris Letang. In so doing, Crosby set an NHL record for fewest games played by an NHL team's points leader. Crosby missed the first 20 games of the
2011–12 season due to the lingering effects of his concussion or possibly multiple. He returned on November 21, 2011, in a game against the New York Islanders, scoring two goals and two assists in a 5–0 shutout for the Penguins. However, after playing another seven games – scoring a total of 12 points in eight games – Crosby's concussion-like symptoms returned on December 5, possibly following an elbow hit by Boston Bruins centre
David Krejčí in his eighth game of the season. Despite passing a successful ImPACT test, Crosby decided not to return on the ice until he felt perfectly fine, stating that he also must "listen to [his] body". Crosby returned to action on March 15, 2012, recording two assists on goals by
Chris Kunitz and
Pascal Dupuis in a 5–2 win against the New York Rangers. Despite only playing 22 games, Crosby recorded eight goals and 29 assists for 37 points. He later credited neurologists at
UPMC and
chiropractic neurologist Ted Carrick with helping him return to hockey. Crosby's return in advance of the
2012 playoffs resulted in many experts predicting that the Penguins would win their second Stanley Cup title in four years, and though the Penguins were accordingly picked to oust the Philadelphia Flyers in their first-round series, it was acknowledged that it would be a tough series for both teams. The Flyers shocked the Penguins by winning the first three consecutive games, the third of which saw the teams combine for 158 penalty minutes. After an 8–4 loss in game three, Crosby was widely criticized for his conduct during the game, and for his testy post-game interview. When asked about an incident where Flyers winger
Jakub Voráček had dropped his glove and Crosby swatted it away with his stick before Voráček could pick it up, Crosby replied, saying, "I don't like any guy on their team there, so his glove was near me, went to pick it up, and I pushed it, so yeah, that's... [...] I don't like them. Because I don't like them. I don't like... I don't like any guy on their team." When the interviewer suggested that he could have skated away, Crosby replied, "Skate away? Yeah, well, I didn't that time." The Penguins went on to win the next two games, but ultimately lost the series in game six. Crosby finished with three goals and five assists for eight points in all six games. On June 28, 2012, the Penguins announced that Crosby agreed to a 12-year, $104.4 million contract extension set to keep Crosby in Pittsburgh through to the end of the 2024–25 NHL season. The start of the
2012–13 season was postponed until January 2013 due to the owners
locking out the players as negotiations took place to solidify a new
collective agreement for the players. During this time, Crosby was a regular attendee of meetings taking place between
National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) representatives and NHL owners. The lock-out began on September 15, 2012, and ended on January 6, 2013, with the NHL regular season beginning on January 19. During the 119-day lock-out, Crosby was often questioned about his future plans should the lockout persist, and said on more than one occasion that he was considering contract offers from various teams in European leagues (where many NHL players went so that they could continue playing in a professional capacity while waiting for the lock-out to end or for the NHL season to be officially cancelled). Crosby continued to practice and participated with other NHL players who did not go overseas in several exhibition games open to the public. With the season finally underway in January 2013, Crosby set the pace for scoring, totalling 31 points (nine goals and 22 assists) through the first 21 games. He remained hot through March, scoring another 25 points (six goals and 19 assists) in 15 games as the Penguins went unbeaten over this stretch. However, his regular season came to an abrupt end on March 30 in a home game against the New York Islanders. Crosby's teammate
Brooks Orpik unleashed a slapshot which caught Crosby in the mouth, causing the centreman to lose several teeth. Crosby was down on the ice for several minutes before the medical staff was able to help him to the dressing room with Crosby holding a towel over his face. Initially, the prognosis was not severe, but it was discovered a short while later that Crosby had broken his jaw and would require several rounds of reconstructive dental surgery. He missed the final 12 games of the regular season and finished fourth in the scoring race, losing the title to Tampa Bay's
Martin St. Louis by four points. Crosby returned to the ice May 5 for the Penguins' second game against their first-round playoff opponents, the New York Islanders, ironically, the team who Pittsburgh played when Crosby was injured weeks prior. Despite two goals from Crosby, Pittsburgh lost 3–2, tying the series at one game apiece. The top-seeded Penguins would ultimately prevail 4–2 in the series over the eighth-seeded Islanders with Crosby scoring nine points (three goals and six assists) in the five games in which he played. Crosby and the Penguins moved on to face the Ottawa Senators in the second round, with Crosby scoring a hat-trick in game two of the series. Pittsburgh quickly defeated Ottawa four games to one in the series with a still-hot Crosby finishing the series with four goals and two assists. The Eastern Conference finals came down to what many felt were the two best teams in the conference: Pittsburgh and Boston Bruins goaltender
Tuukka Rask put on an outstanding performance, shutting down Pittsburgh's potent offence with the help of a stifling defensive effort from his teammates. The Penguins were held to just two goals in the series, with Rask stopping 134 of 136 shots on goal (.985%). Crosby, who was strong for the Penguins in the regular season and through the first two rounds of the playoffs was held off the score sheet entirely, finishing the series with no goals and no assists on 13 shots within the four games as the Bruins swept the Penguins in four-straight games. In the off-season, Crosby was awarded his second Ted Lindsay Award and finished as runner-up to the Hart Memorial Trophy and
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. captain
Zdeno Chára following Pittsburgh's elimination from the
2013 playoffs and Boston's four-game sweep over them in the Eastern Conference finals. Crosby put together a healthy and productive campaign in
2013–14, playing 80 games for the first time since the 2009–10 season. Crosby finished the season with 36 goals and a league-leading 68 assists, marking the first time in his career that he led the league in assists. He also finished with a league-high 104 points, winning the Art Ross Trophy for the second time in his career. He also went on to win the Hart Memorial Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award. Finishing first overall in the Metropolitan Division, the Penguins were matched-up with a new division rival, the
Columbus Blue Jackets, in the first round of the
2014 playoffs. Despite a very back-and-forth series and not a single goal by Crosby, the Penguins defeated the Jackets in six games to advance to a second-round matchup with the New York Rangers. Going into their second-round series with the Rangers, Crosby looked to end a long playoff goal drought, which dated back to the 2013 conference finals against the Boston Bruins. After dropping the first game at home, Crosby broke his goal drought in game two as the Pens tied the series at 1–1 heading back to
Madison Square Garden. The Penguins would capitalize on their game two win, taking the next two games and eliminating the Rangers' home-ice advantage. However, the Rangers rebounded, winning games 5, 6 and 7, sending the Penguins home without a prize for the fifth straight season and surrendering a 3–1 series lead. The team's collapse prompted Penguins ownership to fire general manager
Ray Shero, replacing him with
Jim Rutherford, the former general manager of the Carolina Hurricanes. Rutherford's first action as GM was to fire
Dan Bylsma as head coach, and on June 25, he announced that
Mike Johnston was the new head coach. Crosby finished the
2014–15 season with the highest point-per-game average and a total of 84 points (28 goals, 56 assists), trailing only New York Islanders centre and captain
John Tavares (86 points) and Art Ross winner and
Dallas Stars winger and captain
Jamie Benn (87 points). On November 26, 2014, Crosby scored his 800th career point against the Toronto Maple Leafs, becoming the sixth-fastest player in NHL history to reach that milestone. On April 1, 2015, in a game against goaltender
Steve Mason of the Philadelphia Flyers, Crosby scored his 300th career NHL goal. Despite a strong start to the season, the injury-plagued Penguins narrowly entered the playoffs as the Eastern Conference's second wild card and eighth seed, beating the Boston Bruins by two points in the standings for the eighth and last playoff spot. Facing the
Presidents' Trophy-winning New York Rangers in the opening round of the
2015 playoffs, Crosby helped even the series with two goals in game two on Rangers' goaltender
Henrik Lundqvist. Despite this, the Penguins were defeated by the Rangers in five games and was eliminated in the first round for the first time since the 2012 playoffs. In the 2015 off-season, the Penguins went through a major overhaul of their roster, adding a number of offensive players such as acquiring winger
Phil Kessel from the Toronto Maple Leafs. Despite a line-up laced with some of the world's finest offensive talents, Crosby struggled to score points, as he and the team had for much of the Johnston era. By the time Johnston was fired on December 12, 2015, after posting a 15–10–3 record through 28 games, some media outlets began speculating that Crosby had aged out of his prime scoring years. On December 16,
The Washington Post wrote, "Sidney Crosby has widely been regarded as the NHL's best player since he burst on the scene as a rookie in 2005 ... But Crosby just hasn't been himself this season, scoring just six goals and 13 assists for 19 points in the first 29 games and sitting with a plus/minus of minus-seven. All players go through slumps, but it is clear that the Crosby we knew has been on the decline for some time." His slow start was capped off by not being selected as a starter for the
2016 NHL All-Star Game. However, under new head coach
Mike Sullivan, the 28-year-old turned his season around, outscoring all NHL players from December 12 through the end of the season. On February 2, Crosby scored three-straight goals against the Ottawa Senators for his first natural hat-trick in more than five years. Four days later, Crosby scored his 900th, 901st and 902nd career NHL points to fuel a 3–2 overtime comeback victory over the
Florida Panthers. He tallied at least one point in 15 of Pittsburgh's 16 games in March, including six multi-point efforts, and was subsequently named the NHL's First Star of the Month. On April 2, Crosby recorded his 600th NHL assist as the Penguins clinched their berth in the
2016 playoffs. Six days later, he scored in overtime against the Washington Capitals to secure home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Crosby finished the
2015–16 season with 36 goals, 49 assists and 85 points in 80 games, including a career-high nine game-winning goals, and was voted team MVP for the sixth time in his career. His
two-way game also received league-wide praise, with Hockey Hall of Fame head coach
Scotty Bowman stating that Crosby would be a good candidate for the
Frank J. Selke Trophy as the league's best defensive forward. Crosby's comeback also impressed Wayne Gretzky, who said, "He had a tough start, but the sign of an elite athlete is a guy that battles through it. He didn't point any fingers, he just battled through it, and I don't think there is any question the last 40 or so games, he made a case for the MVP. He was that good. He went to another level." On May 7, Crosby was named a finalist for the Hart Memorial Trophy which was eventually given to
Chicago Blackhawks winger
Patrick Kane. He finished as the first runner-up with 800 points and 11 first-place votes. After losing to New York Rangers in the past two playoffs, the Penguins eliminated the Rangers in the first round, winning in five games, after losing to the Rangers by the same series margin in the first round the previous year. Crosby led the team in scoring with three goals and five assists for eight points in the series. The Penguins then eliminated the Presidents' Trophy-winning Washington Capitals in six games, without much offensive production from either Crosby (two assists) or Malkin (one goal and one assist). Advancing to their first conference finals since 2013, Crosby scored the overtime winner against the Tampa Bay Lightning in game two. The goal was scored 40 seconds into overtime on Lightning goaltender
Andrei Vasilevskiy for a 3–2 win, the fastest overtime goal in Penguins' playoff history, and the first of his career in the playoffs. In the following game, he scored the game-winning goal in a 4–2 victory. After dropping the next two games, Crosby scored his third game-winning goal of the series on Vasilevskiy in game six, forcing a final game in Pittsburgh. Defeating the Lightning 2–1 in game seven, Crosby helped his team win the Eastern Conference championship, advancing to the
Stanley Cup Final against the
San Jose Sharks and prevent the Lightning from clinching a
second consecutive appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals of their own. In the Finals, the Penguins defeated the Sharks in six games to earn Crosby his second Stanley Cup title. He became the ninth player to win the Stanley Cup twice as well as two Olympic gold medals. Finishing the playoffs with 19 points (six goals and 13 assists), including the primary helper on the Cup-winning goal scored by Kris Letang, Crosby was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs. Crosby missed the first six games of the
2016–17 season after being diagnosed with a concussion in practice just a few days before the season opener against the Washington Capitals. Upon his return, he scored 30 goals in his first 45 games, and on February 16, 2017, he registered an assist on a Chris Kunitz goal against the
Winnipeg Jets to reach
1,000 NHL points, doing so in just his 757th game to become the 12th-fastest (and 11th-youngest) player to reach that milestone. He also participated in his first
NHL All-Star Game since 2007, winning the shooting accuracy segment of the Skills Competition. He was named team MVP and finished the season with 89 points (44 goals, 45 assists) in 75 contests played. His 89 points tied with Chicago Blackhawks' Patrick Kane as the runner(s) up for the Art Ross Trophy. It marked the eighth time he finished a season in the top-three in NHL scoring, tying Mario Lemieux,
Stan Mikita and
Phil Esposito for the third-most instances in history behind only Wayne Gretzky (15 times) and
Gordie Howe (12 times). With his 44 goals, Crosby captured the Rocket Richard Trophy for the second time in his career. Crosby was also named a finalist for the Hart Memorial Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award with both awards eventually going to
Edmonton Oilers centre and captain
Connor McDavid. Entering the
2017 playoffs as the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Penguins defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets in five games before meeting the back to back Presidents' Trophy-winning Washington Capitals in the second round for the second consecutive year. After winning the first two games on the road, Crosby sustained a concussion after suffering an injury from a slash and cross-check from both Alexander Ovechkin and
Matt Niskanen in game three. He missed game four but returned to practice the next day and played in game five. The Penguins eventually eliminated the Capitals in game seven, with Crosby assisting on the series-winning goal by
Bryan Rust. The Penguins then defeated the Ottawa Senators in a gruelling seven-game series to secure their second consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup Finals. Crosby had the primary assist on the series-clinching goal, scored by Chris Kunitz in double overtime. Facing the eighth-seeded
Nashville Predators in the
Finals, Pittsburgh jumped out to a two-game lead, despite being outplayed for long stretches in both games. The Predators responded by tying up the series, winning games three and four at home. In game five, the Penguins' captain delivered a dominant performance, adding three assists in a 6–0 win to pass Lemieux for most Stanley Cup Finals points (20) in franchise history. After defeating the Predators 2–0 in game six, the Penguins became the first team to repeat as Stanley Cup champions since the
1997–98 Detroit Red Wings, and the first to do so in the salary cap era (since 2005–06). Crosby also won his second consecutive Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the playoffs, only the third player to do so after
Bernie Parent (1974, 1975) and Mario Lemieux (1991, 1992). He finished second in scoring behind Evgeni Malkin with 27 points (eight goals and 19 assists) in 24 games. (left) in October 2017. They became the cornerstone players of the Pittsburgh Penguins in the mid-2000s, earning the nickname "The Two-Headed Monster". In the
2017–18 season, Crosby appeared in all 82 of Pittsburgh's regular season games for the first time in his career, finishing with 29 goals and 60 assists for 89 points. On February 11, 2018, he scored his 400th NHL goal against
Jake Allen of the
St. Louis Blues, becoming the 95th player in NHL history to reach the milestone as the Penguins defeated the Blues 4–1. On March 21, he recorded his 700th career NHL assist on a
Jake Guentzel goal in a 5–3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. The Penguins began their
2018 playoff campaign against their inner-state rival, the Philadelphia Flyers. In game one of the Battle of Pennsylvania, Crosby recorded a
natural hat-trick in a 7–0 win. On April 18, in game four, Crosby passed Mario Lemieux as the Penguins' all-time playoff points leader with 173. The Penguins ultimately defeated the fifth-seeded Flyers in six games, with Crosby recording six goals and seven assists for 13 points. After the series, retired Hockey Hall of Fame centre
Bryan Trottier said of Crosby, "Sid has a wonderful gift to maintain his composure and not get rattled. You like the emotion he shows, too. I think he fires his team up, and that's why he's wearing the 'C' [for captain]." The Penguins were eventually eliminated in game six of the second round by the second-seeded and eventual Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals with Capitals' centre
Evgeny Kuznetsov scoring the winning goal in overtime. Crosby finished with 21 points (nine goals and 12 assists) in all 12 games, pushing his career playoff total to 185, tied with Steve Yzerman for tenth-most all-time.
Early playoff exits (2018–2022) On December 31, 2018, Crosby played his 900th NHL game in a 3–2 win over the
Minnesota Wild, becoming the second player in Penguins history to reach the mark. On January 3, 2019, Crosby was selected to play in the
NHL All-Star Game for the eighth time in his career. He scored four goals and four assists, helping the Metropolitan Division to victory; his efforts won him his first All-Star MVP award, making him the sixth in NHL history to have won that award after having won the Conn Smythe Trophy and Hart Memorial Trophy. During the
2018–19 season, Crosby passed Mario Lemieux to become the Penguins' all-time leader in games played (916), and moved into second place on the Pens' all-time scoring list with his 440th career goal in a 5–1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on March 3. Two days later, he became the 48th player in NHL history to score at least 1,200 career points against the Florida Panthers. He finished the season with 100 points (35 goals and 65 assists), the first time he has reached the 100-point mark since scoring 104 points in 2013–14. Crosby finished 4th in voting for the Selke Trophy and became a Hart Trophy finalist for the seventh time in his career as the Selke eventually went to St. Louis Blues centre
Ryan O'Reilly and the Hart getting awarded to Tampa Bay Lightning winger
Nikita Kucherov, respectively. He was also elected team-MVP. Crosby was selected to the NHL All-Decade First Team in January 2020. The Penguins finished fifth in the Eastern Conference in the COVID-19 pandemic-shortened
2019–20 season, facing the 12th-seeded Montreal Canadiens in the Eastern Conference qualifying round. The Canadiens upset the Penguins in four games, eliminating Pittsburgh on August 7, 2020, Crosby's 33rd birthday. In the
pandemic-shortened
2020–21 season, Crosby led the team in scoring with 62 points (24 goals and 38 assists), and was the recipient of the team's MVP Award and the Players' Player Award. He was also a finalist for the Ted Lindsay Award which was eventually awarded to Edmonton Oilers centre and captain Connor McDavid. On February 20, 2021, Crosby became the first player in Penguins history to play 1,000 games with the franchise in a 3–2 win over the New York Islanders. The team clinched a playoff berth for the 15th consecutive season under Crosby's captaincy, the longest active postseason streak among all teams in the North American professional sports leagues. However, the Penguins were eliminated in the first round of the
2021 playoffs by the New York Islanders for the second time in three seasons. On February 15, 2022, Crosby scored his 500th career goal on a power play against the Philadelphia Flyers, becoming the 46th player to score that many goals in NHL history and the 18th to have scored them all for a single team. He was the second Penguin to score 500 goals, after Lemieux. Continuing to hit new milestones, in an April 10 game against the Nashville Predators he recorded a goal and an assist in regulation time, before scoring the overtime-winning goal, his 1400th point in the NHL. Crosby finished the
2021–22 season with 31 goals and 53 assists for 84 points in 69 games played, while the Penguins were third in the Metropolitan Division. They advanced into the
2022 playoffs to meet the New York Rangers. With both Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang's contracts up in the summer, there was some question as to whether this would be the final outing for the core of the Penguins franchise in Crosby's era. In game three of the series against the Rangers, Crosby recorded his 197th career playoff point, passing
Paul Coffey for sixth place in all-time playoff point standings. Two days later, he managed a goal and two assists in the Penguins' 7–2 victory in game four and 3–1 series lead, becoming the sixth player in league history to record 200 career points in the playoffs. Midway through the second period of game five in Madison Square Garden, with the Penguins up 2–0, Crosby took an elbow to the head from Rangers defenceman
Jacob Trouba and exited the game. In his absence, the Rangers rallied to win 5–3 and stave off elimination, and Crosby's departure was widely cited as the game's turning point. Head coach Mike Sullivan said that Crosby was being evaluated. After missing game six, Crosby returned for game seven, alongside absent team goaltender
Tristan Jarry and winger
Rickard Rakell. However, the Penguins lost to the Rangers in overtime with Rangers winger
Artemi Panarin scoring the winner for the Rangers to take a 4–3 win in the game and 4–3 win in the series, eliminating the Penguins. The Penguins surrendered a 3–1 series lead to the Rangers for the second time in less than a decade.
Recent years (2022–present) In the 2022 off-season, it was reported that Crosby played a key role in facilitating a new deal between the Penguins and Evgeni Malkin, after the latter had initially announced he would test free agency. Crosby began the
2022–23 season by registering two goals and four assists in his first two games, being named the first star of the first week while leading the league in scoring. After strong initial results, the team struggled with a lengthy losing streak, but Crosby recorded his 900th career assist on a Jake Guentzel goal on November 5, 2022, a 3–2 loss to the
Seattle Kraken. He was the sixth-fastest player to this feat in NHL history. On April 8, Crosby registered his 1500th career point in a 5–1 win against the Detroit Red Wings, the fifteenth NHL player to hit that milestone, and in the sixth-fewest games (1188). As the poor performance of the team continued into the spring, the Penguins' league-best 16-year playoff streak increasingly came into jeopardy, and by the final weeks of the season they were battling the Florida Panther] and the New York Islanders for the two Eastern Conference wildcard positions. A 5–2 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on April 11, at that moment the team at the bottom of the standings, in the penultimate game of the season, combined with an Islanders victory the following day, sealed the Penguins' missing the playoffs for the first time since
2005–06, Crosby's rookie season and for the first time in Crosby's captaincy. This happened despite Crosby playing all 82 games for only the second time in his career, and doing so alongside Evgeni Malkin for the first time. Much recrimination ensued among fans and commentators, with many calling for the sacking of Penguins general manager
Ron Hextall for his perceived mistakes in constructing the team in the previous 2022 off-season. Hextall and team executive
Brian Burke were both fired the day after the season ended, with owners
Fenway Sports Group promising "the goal of contending for the Stanley Cup has not changed." Shortly the
2023–24 season, his 19th season in the NHL, on November 4, 2023, Crosby skated in his 1,200th game, recording an assist in a 10–2 victory over the San Jose Sharks. About the achievement, Crosby said: "You don't just love it when it's good to you. You love it when it's tough and when it's difficult too. When that passion's not there, or that love's not there, it's probably time to stop doing it." On April 1, 2024, following a 5–2 win over the New York Rangers, Crosby became the second player in NHL history to average a point per game for the 19th consecutive season, joining Wayne Gretzky. On April 11, Crosby recorded his 1,000th NHL assist on a goal by
Erik Karlsson in a 6–5 overtime win over the Detroit Red Wings to become the 14th player in league history and seventh fastest player to hit the mark (at 1,269 games). Crosby finished the season playing in all 82 contests played with 42 goals, 52 assists and 94 points recorded. Despite his continuation of individual productivity, the Penguins finished three points out of a playoff spot marking the first time in Crosby's tenure where the Penguins missed the playoffs in two consecutive seasons. On September 16, 2024, Crosby signed a two-year $17.4 million extension ($8.7 million average) to remain with the Penguins. On November 23, Crosby scored his 600th NHL goal against goaltender
Karel Vejmelka of the
Utah Mammoth, becoming the 21st player in league history and second player in Penguins history to achieve the feat as the Penguins lost the game 6–1. The Penguins continued to struggle as a team, missing the playoffs for the third consecutive time and fourth time in Crosby's tenure, ending up 11 points short of the last playoff spot. Despite the team's struggles, Crosby remained productive individually as he finished the season with 33 goals and 58 assists for 91 points in 80 games. Despite these offensive statistics, he had a career-worst −20
plus-minus rating. On March 28, 2025 Crosby became the only player in NHL history to average over a point-per-game over 20 seasons. On December 22, 2025, Crosby became the Penguins all-time points leader with 1,724 points, at the same time passing Mario Lemieux for 8th all-time in NHL scoring. Crosby would later climb to 7th on the all-time scoring list on April 4, 2026, after a two point game against the
Florida Panthers, passing
Steve Yzerman. ==International play==