Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby He just turned 37 on August 7th. He is about to skate into his 20th season in the NHL and continues to rack up 592 goals, 1,004 assists and 1,596 points, all of which rank among the all-time greats.
For 18 years, Crosby skated alongside Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin, the latter of whom will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer when he retires. Additionally, Crosby spent much of his career with Marc-Andre Fleury, the second-winningest goaltender in NHL history.
It’s safe to say that no matter what Sid the Kid does for the rest of his career, he’s already considered the greatest of all time and has achieved all of these accolades without a cast of Hall of Famers by his side.
In 19 seasons, Crosby has skated with just four Hockey Hall of Famers, with a handful of former and current teammates who may be eligible in later years.
Who are these players?
Mário Lemieux (2005-06)
Mario Lemieux retired in 1997 and immediately entered the Hockey Hall of Fame, bypassing the committee’s mandatory three-year waiting period.
A few years later, he purchased the team out of bankruptcy and staged a historic comeback in 2001. However, the Penguins entered a dark period and continually finished as the last seed, winning the 2005 Draft Lottery and selecting Crosby.
Although Lemieux took young Crosby into his home, the pair only played together 26 times before Le Magnifique had to retire for a second time. However, that didn’t stop the duo from winning three Stanley Cup titles together as players and owners in 2009, 2016 and 2017.
Mark Recchi (2006 – 2008)
Marcos Reechi He began his Hall of Fame career with the Penguins, winning the Stanley Cup with the team in 1991. He eventually left town and played for many franchises before returning after the 2005 NHL lockout.
He played 63 games in 2005-06 before a deal with the Carolina Hurricanes gave him a second championship ring that spring. Immediately after the parade, Recchi returned to Pittsburgh and stayed for another season and a half.
After 22 seasons, including 1,652 games with seven franchises, Recchi retired after winning his third Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins in 2011. Interestingly, he became the Penguins’ development coach in 2014, rising to assistant coach from 2017 to 2020. working side by side with Crosby.
Marian Hossa (2007-08)
Marian Hossa arrived at the Penguins at the 2008 trade deadline and helped the team reach their first Stanley Cup Final since 1992. Unfortunately, the series ended with a loss to the Detroit Red Wings in six games, but Hossa had 26 points in 20 playoffs . games to finish second in scoring behind Crosby.
After losing in the finals, he jumped to the Red Wings, who the Penguins ended up defeating in Game 7 of the 2009 championship series. In 2010, as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks, Hossa finally won the Stanley Cup in his third consecutive finals appearance. . In the end, he would win again in 2013 and 2015.
Jarome Iginla (2012-13)
After 16 years with the Calgary Flames, the organization moved Jarome Iginla, who ended up with the Penguins at the 2013 trade deadline. In 13 regular season games, he scored 11 points before adding an additional 12 in 15 playoff games.
However, Iginla and the Penguins encountered a better team in the postseason, getting swept by the Bruins, who would go on to lose to the Blackhawks and Hossa in the 2013 Stanley Cup Final.
In the offseason, Iginla moved to Boston and never won a championship before retiring with 625 goals. Despite not winning a championship together, Iginla and Crosby will forever be linked because they brought Olympic gold back to Canada in 2010.
