The NHL celebrates the best of the last 25 years by unveiling the quarter-century teams from each of the 32 NHL franchises and the Arizona Coyotes. Each team is represented by six players – three forwards, two defensemen and a goalie – who played for that franchise after January 1, 2000. The players were selected by members of the national and local media, by journalists from NHL.com who covered these teams as well as by former players. The six players who were selected will have their names placed on the ballot for the NHL’s Quarter-Century All-Star Team, which will be determined by a fan vote beginning in February.
Pittsburgh Pinguins
Attackers
Sidney Crosby
Jake Guentzel
Evgeni Malkin
Defenders
Sergei Gonchar
Kris Letang
Guardian
Marc-André Fleury
Attackers: Legends. That best describes Crosby and Malkin. Legends of Pittsburgh, the NHL and hockey. Crosby is first in the NHL in the century with 1,640 points and many more to come. He is second in goals (603), behind Alex Ovechkin (872). He will soon be first in assists, but for now, he has 20 fewer than Joe Thornton (1,037). Malkin is sixth in goals (506), fifth in assists (822) and fourth in points (1,328) in the NHL since the turn of the century. In Pittsburgh history, Crosby is the one who has played the most games (1,314) and has the most assists. He is second behind Mario Lemieux in goals and points, but he can aspire to catch up in these two categories. Lemieux scored 690 goals and 1723 points. Malkin is second to Crosby in games played (1,186). He is third in Pittsburgh history in goals, assists and points. Additionally, Crosby and Malkin joined forces to lead the Penguins to three Stanley Cup titles (2009, 2016, 2017). Crosby is Pittsburgh’s all-time playoff leader in games played (180), assists (130) and points (201). With 71 goals, he is only five fewer than Lemieux. Malkin is second in games played (177), assists (113) and points (180). He is third in goals (67). Guentzel earned a spot on this first all-star team by being more than just a linemate for Crosby between 2016 and 2024. He accumulated 58 points (24 goals, 34 assists) in 58 playoff games, helping the Penguins to win the Cup in 2017. He is third among Penguins forwards in goals (219), assists (247) and points (466) in 503 parts during the century.
Defenders: Letang is another legend. Like Crosby and Malkin’s numbers 87 and 71, Letang’s 58 will be hoisted to the heights of PPG Paints Arena after his career. He could also make it into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Letang leads just about every statistical category worth mentioning among defensemen in Penguins history with 173 goals, 585 assists, 758 points and 1,123 games played. In the playoffs, he amassed 23 goals, 67 points, 90 assists and played 149 games, all highs among guards in team history. He, too, has won the Stanley Cup three times, although he did not play in the 2017 playoffs due to injury. Gonchar accomplished a lot in just five seasons with the Penguins from 2005 to 2010. He is second among defensemen in Pittsburgh history in goals (54), assists (205) and points (259) in 322 games. He is third among Penguins defensemen in playoff points with 44 (seven goals, 37 assists) in 60 games. He won the Cup with the Penguins in 2009.
Guardian : Fleury, another Penguins legend, is first in the NHL over the last 25 years with 569 wins and 1,038 games played. He signed 375 victories and played 691 games in 13 seasons with the Penguins from 2003 to 2017. His victories and games played are obviously records in Pittsburgh history, as are his 44 shutouts. He posted a .912 save percentage and a 2.58 goals-against average with the Penguins. Fleury led them to the Stanley Cup in 2009, then he acted as backup to Matt Murray in 2016, before playing an important role in the 2017 conquest by starting 15 games. That year, he went 9-6 with a 2.56 GAA and a .924 save percentage. We will have to save a place for his number 29 in the heights of the PPG Paints Arena.
Second team
Attackers
Phil Kessel
Chris Kunitz
Mario Lemieux
Defenders
Brian Dumoulin
Brooks Orpik
Guardian
Matt Murray
