Pittsburgh Penguins Tickets

The Penguins were one of six teams that joined the NHL when the league first expanded in 1967. The team made the playoffs a few times in the 1970s but struggled financially. Things started to change in Pittsburgh after the Penguins drafted Mario Lemieux with the first overall pick in the 1984 draft.

Even with Lemieux, who is widely regarded as one of the best to ever play the game, the Penguins failed to make the playoffs in Lemieux's first four seasons. By the 1990-91 season, the team began to build seriously around Lemieux. Players like Mark Recchi, Paul Coffey, Bryan Trottier, and Ron Francis played major roles during the season while Lemieux was limited to just 26 games. The 90-91 season was also the rookie year for Jaromir Jagr, who would go on to have one of the longest and most prolific careers in NHL history. A healthy Lemieux returned for the playoffs, and he was nearly unstoppable. “Super Mario” scored 44 points in just 23 games, and the Penguins won their first Stanley Cup.

In the following season, Lemieux led the NHL in points even though he only played in 64 games. The Penguins reached the Stanley Cup Final again in 1992 and swept the Chicago Blackhawks to win their second Stanley Cup.

Lemieux’s career was tragically limited by injuries and health problems, including a battle with cancer. He ultimately played in fewer than 1000 games, but his points per game totals still rivaled Wayne Gretzky’s. Eventually, Lemieux helped to save the Penguins from bankruptcy and became the team’s principal owner.

After the NHL lockout cancelled the 2004-05 season, the Penguins won the draft lottery and selected Sidney Crosby with the first overall pick. Crosby helped to quickly revitalize hockey in Pittsburgh. Joined by players like Evgeni Malkin and Marc Andre Fleury, Crosby led the Penguins to the Stanley Cup Final in 2008 and then to a championship in 2009.

Crosby and the Penguins continued to make the playoffs each year but failed to reach the Stanley Cup Final again for some time. This changed when the Penguins acquired Phil Kessel from Toronto, adding to an already deep set of forwards. The Penguins then won their second set of back to back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017.