Game Notes
The Penguins are 6-3-3 in their last 12 games against the Islanders.
Tristan Jarry sits one win shy of his fifth-consecutive 20-win season. Jarry’s four 20-win campaigns are tied for third in franchise history behind MarcAndre Fleury (9) and Tom Barrasso (6). Jarry is 11-3-1 with a 2.28 goals-against average, a .923 save percentage and three shutouts in 15 career games against New York.
Jeff Carter ranks sixth among active players with 50 points (23G-27A) in 61 career games against the New York Islanders. It’s the most points he’s accumulated against any one team.
Kris Letang leads all active NHL blueliners in goals (13), assists (36) and points (49) versus the Islanders.
Reilly Smith has 19 points (7G-12A) in 25 career games against the Islanders, which includes nine points (3G-6A) in his last 11 games against them.
The Penguins own an overall record of 387-88-47 when both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin record a point in a game.
Evgeni Malkin enters tonight’s game just three goals away from becoming the 48th player in NHL history to score 500 career goals. When he reaches that milestone, Malkin will join teammate Sidney Crosby (592), as well as Washington’s Alex Ovechkin (852), and Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos (555) as the only active players with 500-plus goals. Malkin, who has the third-most goals in Penguins history with 497 in 1,144 games, will be the 20th player in NHL history to score 500 goals with one team. Pittsburgh (Mario Lemieux and Crosby) is set to become the second team in NHL history with three 500-goal scorers, joining the Montreal Canadiens (Guy Lafleur, Jean Beliveau, and Maurice Richard).
Sidney Crosby has been the driving force behind Pittsburgh’s recent surge, as he enters tonight’s game with points in 11 of his last 12 games (9G-14A). Crosby’s 23 points since Mar. 24 rank first in the NHL. Crosby has points in 15 of his last 17 games overall, accumulating 28 points total (10G-18A) in that span.
Sidney Crosby’s 42 goals this season are the third most that he’s scored in a single season in his career (51 in 2009.10 and 44 in 2016.17), while his 92 points are eighth most. Of his 92 points, 71 of them have come at even strength, which is one point shy of tying his career high set in 2009.10. Crosby is two even-strength goals shy of tying Luc Robitaille for the 13th-most even-strength goals in NHL history.
Marcus Pettersson has quietly been one of Pittsburgh’s most consistent players this season, as he’s set new single-season career highs in multiple categories: goals (4), assists (26), points (30), plus/minus (+27), game-winning goals (1), shots (106), TOI/GM (22:40), blocked shots (159), and takeaways (26). Pettersson’s plus-27 this season is set to be the highest plus/minus by a Penguin since Brian Dumoulin (+31) in 2018.19 while his 159 blocked shots are the third most in a single season in franchise history.
Bryan Rust, who has a career-high 28 goals this season, is two goals shy of becoming just the seventh Penguins’ skater since 2005.06 to score 30 or more goals in a season with the team. Rust is also two points shy of matching his career high of 58, set in the 2021.22 campaign (24G-34A).
Sidney Crosby, who leads the Penguins with 92 points (42G-50A) in 81 games, is still producing at an elite rate in his 19th season. The 36-yearold Crosby has one of the highest points-per-game averages in NHL history from a player’s 35th birthday and on. After hitting the 90-point plateau, Crosby has become one of just five players in NHL history to record multiple 90-point seasons at age 35 or older (age at start of season).
Erik Karlsson’s 55 points (11G-44A) has the fourth-most points among defensemen in their first season with the Penguins. Karlsson has nine points (3G-6A) over his last seven games played.
Michael Bunting enters tonight’s game one goal shy of 20 this season. Bunting has 53 points (19G-34A) and crossed the 50-point mark for the second time in his career (63 points in 2021.22). Bunting’s 17 points (6G-11A) in 20 games since joining the Penguins are tied for third on the team, while his six goals are the fifth-most in that span.
Throughout his career, Sidney Crosby has played dominant hockey against the New York Islanders. In 85 career games, Crosby has recorded 132 points (41G-91A) against the Islanders, helping Pittsburgh to a 51-22-12 record in those games. He has almost double the amount of multipoint games against them (39) as opposed to games with no points (22). Only Jaromir Jagr (155) has more points against the Islanders in NHL history than Crosby’s 132. Crosby’s 132 points versus the Islanders are also the most that any active player has against one single team.
