Top 10 Best Pittsburgh Penguins Players of All Time

Established in 1967, the Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional hockey team that has collected five Stanley Cup victories. Over the years, some of the best NHL talent has found its home with the Penguins, with the franchise hosting legendary NHL players like Mario Lemieux, Sidney Crosby, and Jaromír Jágr. This list ranks these great names and seven others, covering the 10 best Pittsburgh Penguins players of all time.

Who Are the Best Pittsburgh Penguins Hockey Players of All Time?

1. Mario Lemieux
2. Sidney Crosby
3. Jaromír Jágr
4. Evgeni Malkin
5. Kris Letang
6. Marc-André Fleury
7. Ron Francis
8. Kevin Stevens
9. Jean Pronovost
10. Mark Recchi

1. Mario Lemieux

• Six Art Ross Trophies
• Two-time Stanley Cup champion
• 10-time All-Star
• Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame (1997)

Mario Lemieux played 18 seasons of NHL hockey from 1984-2006. A career-long Penguin, Lemieux set the bar high for Pittsburgh centers, putting up outrageous offensive stats in every category. Lemieux holds the Penguins’ records for all-time assists (1,033), goals (690), and points (1,723). Although the Penguins’ current center, Sidney Crosby, isn’t too far behind in these statistics, Crosby is in his 18th NHL season and still at least 100 points behind Lemieux in each category. Lemieux’s 1,723 points are the eighth-most scored by any NHL player in all of history.

His name is mentioned among legends like Wayne Gretsky, Jaromír Jágr, Mark Messier, and Gordie Howe. Lemieux won Stanley Cups with Pittsburgh in both 1991 and 1992. He made 10 All-Star appearances and won the Art Ross Trophy on six separate occasions. By far, Mario Lemieux is the best forward in Penguins’ franchise history, and easily one of the best in all of NHL history, as well.

2. Sidney Crosby

• Two-time Messier Award winner
• Eight-time NHL All-Star
• Two-time Conn Smythe Trophy winner
• Three-time Stanley Cup Champion

Sidney Crosby kicked off his NHL career in 2005, beginning his career just as former Penguins’ great Mario Lemieux was ending his. Crosby is still actively playing professional hockey as the Pittsburgh Penguins’ center. Crosby is considered one of the best, if not the overall best player currently in the NHL. Whether or not you dispute Crosby's prominence as the peak of current hockey, what cannot be disputed is his collection of trophies, stats, and medals.

Beyond his two Messier Awards and two Conn Smythe trophies, Sidney Crosby has made eight All-Star appearances, won a Hart Trophy, two Rocket Richard Trophies, two Art Ross Trophies, three Ted Lindsay Trophies, two Olympic Gold medals, and three Stanley Cups. His 1,502 points rank him 15th of all NHL players in the history of the game. The Penguins’ last three Stanley Cup victories, in 2009, 2016, and 2017, were won with Crosby at the offensive helm. He holds second place in Pittsburgh’s record books for every major offensive category, surpassed by Mario Lemieux alone. Crosby has scored 590 goals, 952 assists, and 1,502 points. Crosby has played 18 seasons as a Penguin thus far and has yet to show signs of slowing down.

3. Jaromír Jágr

• Second-most points in all NHL history (1,921)
• Nine-time All-Star
• Five-time Art Ross Trophy winner
• Two-time Stanley Cup Champion

Jaromír Jágr played a 24-year-long career in the NHL, starting with the Pittsburgh Penguins from 1990-2001. Jágr is, debatably, the best overall player on this list. If he had spent more time as a Penguin, he would certainly rank higher; however, Jágr’s 11-season stint in Pittsburgh was still nothing short of legendary.

As a Penguin, Jágr scored 439 goals, 1,079 points, and had 40 assists. Only Wayne Gretzky has scored more points than Jágr’s 1,921 in all of NHL history. On top of five Art Ross Trophies and nine All-Star appearances, Jágr collected an Olympic gold medal, two Stanley Cups, and a Ted Lindsay Trophy. Jágr goes down in NHL history as one of the most prolific professional players of all time, and undoubtedly one of the best Pittsburgh Penguins ever.

4. Evgeni Malkin

• Seven-time All-Star
• Three-time Stanley Cup Champion
• 2007 Calder Trophy winner
• Two-time Art Ross Trophy winner

Evgeni Malkin began his NHL career with the Penguins in 2006 and is still leading the team in the center position. Malkin brought home the Calder Trophy in his first season in the NHL, naming him the best rookie in the league in 2007. This trophy was the first of an impressive list of hardware, as Malkin would go on to collect a Hart Trophy in 2012, the Conn Smythe in 2009, and lead the entire NHL in scoring twice.

Malkin won Stanley Cups in Pittsburgh in 2009, 2016, and 2017, adding the offense necessary to lead the strong defensive team to victory. Malkin already holds third place in Penguins history in the three main offensive stat categories, with 758 assists, 1,229 points, and 471 goals. Evgeni Malkin’s consistency in the Penguins’ lineup, scoring abilities, and overall leadership on the ice has only ever been surpassed by Penguins Sidney Crosby and Mario Lemieux.

5. Kris Letang

• Two-time All-Star
• Two Second-Team All-NHL Selections
• Three-time Stanley Cup winner
• Two-time Pittsburgh Penguins Defensive Player of the Year

Kris Letang is one of only a few players on this list actively playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Letang has already secured a name for himself as the best defenseman in Penguins’ history, and his impressive stats are still compiling. Letang began his NHL career in 2006 and has played all 17 seasons of his career in Pittsburgh.

He has already collected two All-Star selections, two Second-Team All NHL selections, and an outstanding 156 goals as a defenseman. Letang holds the number one slot all-time for Penguins’ defensive point share, at 53.8. His 535 assists are also fifth-best in franchise history. Besides all these personal accomplishments in Pittsburgh, Letang was part of three Stanley Cup-winning Penguins teams, in 2009, 2016, and 2017. With Letang and Marc-André Fleury in the back of the rink these three years, the Penguins were difficult to beat.

6. Marc-André Fleury

• Elected as a member of the NHL All-Decade First Team
• Olympic Gold medalist
• One-time All-Star
• Three-time Stanley Cup Champion

Marc-André Fleury is 19 seasons into his NHL career. Though he keeps goal for the Minnesota Wild now, Fleury got his start with 13 phenomenal years as a Pittsburgh Penguin. Fleury holds the franchise record in nearly every goalkeeping category for the Penguins, boasting 375 wins, 2.58 goals against average, 44 shutouts, and 17,774 saves.

The greatest goalie to ever play Penguins hockey was selected as a member of the NHL All-Decade First Team in January 2020. Fleury has already collected one All-Star selection, an Olympic Gold medal, and a Vezina Trophy, and his career is still rolling. Fleury is also a three-time Stanley Cup Champion, collecting all of these victories in Pittsburgh in 2009, 2016, and 2017. Fleury will undoubtedly find a place in the Hockey Hall of Fame after retirement, and if he does, he will be the first Penguins goalie to do so.

7. Ron Francis

• Four-time All-Star
• Two-time Stanley Cup winner
• Selke Trophy winner (1994-1995 season)
• Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame (2007)

While Ron Francis’s 23-year NHL career only featured eight seasons as a Pittsburgh Penguin, this center remains one of the greatest professional hockey players to play for the franchise. Francis played in Pittsburgh from 1990-1980. He was a key offensive weapon in the Penguins’ 1990-1991 and 1991-1992 Stanley Cup victories. As a Penguin, Francis ranks in the top 10 all-time record books in two offensive categories, falling in seventh place all-time with 613 points and sixth place with 449 assists.

Francis was not only known for his offense, though, as he won the Selke Trophy as a Penguin in the 1994-1995 season, a trophy given out by the NHL to a forward who makes significant defensive contributions. Despite only coming in first place in this voting once, Francis’s name was listed in the considerations for 13 seasons. Francis was a four-time All-Star and was, unsurprisingly, inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007, three years after his 2004 retirement from the sport.

8. Kevin Stevens

• Two-time Stanley Cup Champion
• Three-time All-Star
• Second-most penalty minutes of any Penguin (1,048)

Kevin Stevens spent the first 10 seasons of his 15-year career as a Pittsburgh Penguin, playing for the franchise from 1987-1995. Although unsurprisingly outshined by teammate Mario Lemieux, Stevens more than played his part in bringing two Stanley Cups home to Pittsburgh, contributing 555 points, 260 goals, and 295 assists in 10 years. In each of these statistics, Stevens holds a top 10 spot on the all-time Penguins record books, ranking ninth, seventh, and tenth, respectively.

On top of Stevens’ two Stanley Cups, he was selected as an NHL All-Star on three occasions. Now, Kevin Stevens works as a Special Assignment Scout, bringing fresh hockey talent to the Penguins franchise.

9. Jean Pronovost

• Four-time All-Star
• First Penguin to score 30, 40, and 50 goals in a single season
• First Penguin to score 100 points in a single season
• 1992 Penguins Hall of Fame inductee

Only a year after the Pittsburgh Penguins were established, Jean Pronovost joined the franchise, becoming the first hockey star to wear a Penguin uniform. Pronovost’s NHL career began in 1968 and stretched until 1982. The right wing played his best hockey in his first 10 years with the Penguins.

Joining the team at such an early stage, Pronovost was the first to score 100 points with the team, on top of being the first Penguin to score 30, 40, and 50 goals in a single season. In Pronovost’s 10 seasons with the Penguins, he scored 287 assists, 316 goals, and 603 points. Pronovost is well-remembered by Penguins fans for his part in kicking off Pittsburgh hockey.

10. Mark Recchi

• Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame (2017)
• Eighth-most games played of any NHL player (1,652)
• Seven-time All-Star
• Three-Time Stanley Cup Champion

Drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1988 as a fourth-round pick, Mark Recchi played right wing for the franchise until 1992, before a return stint in Pittsburgh from 2005-2008. After a phenomenal 30-goal second season, Recchi continued to score 40 and 33 goals in his next two years in Pittsburgh.

Recchi’s career lasted 22 seasons, and he played 1,652 total games, the eighth-most in NHL history. Recchi was a productive offensive member in almost all of these seasons, ending with statistics such as 577 career goals and 956 career assists. Over the course of this long career, Recchi collected three Stanley Cups, including one in Pittsburgh in 1991. Currently, Recchi works as an assistant coach on the Penguins’ coaching staff.

Honorable Mentions

• Tom Barrasso
• Patrick Hörnqvist
• Rick Kehoe
• Phil Kessel
• Chris Kunitz
• Paul Coffey
• Joe Mullen
• Larry Murphy
• Rick Tocchet
• Bryan Trottier

FAQ