Crosby wrapping up 20th season for Penguins with ‘pride’

CRANBERRY, Pa. -- Sidney Crosby was one of the first players out of the locker room Tuesday.

The long-time captain and first-line center of the Pittsburgh Penguins went to his usual pre-practice spot, the far corner at the left side of the rink, to work on his shot. Bryan Rust, normally the first skater on the ice, joined a few minutes later.

At 37 years old and in his 20th NHL season, Crosby stayed out well after an hour-long practice.

The Penguins (33-36-12) have been eliminated from contention for the Stanley Cup Playoffs since April 6.

"You have to have pride in what you do, no matter what it is,” Crosby said. “We're pretty fortunate to do what we do here. As much as I’ve said that there's frustrations or it's tough and difficult, in the big scheme of things, we're still pretty fortunate to do what we do. Keep that in the back of your mind. But you always have pride in whatever you do, whatever your role is, whether you're just coming in or you've been here for a long time.

“Hopefully there's a standard that we try to have and that we bring every day, and hopefully we can live up to that. But that's not anything that's given; you have to do it every single day. Today is an opportunity to hopefully get better. We've got to go out there and be professionals about it."

It'll be a third straight season for Pittsburgh without the playoffs.

That's still abnormal for Crosby, who won the Stanley Cup three times (2009, 2016, 2017) in his first 12 seasons after being selected No. 1 at the 2005 NHL Draft.

"I think it's a challenge when you're losing,” Crosby said. “It's not just losses; it's what happens when you lose. It's a trickle-down effect, you know? Obviously, it's a competitive business. The movement and just, you know, there's a lot of things not to like about losing. Obviously, you put a lot of work in to try to win games. I think it's just the trickle-down and how things add up that come with it that makes it tough too."

Winning was the norm. The Penguins qualified for the playoffs 16 straight seasons after missing when Crosby was a rookie in 2005-06.

That streak is gone and another has emerged. They haven't won a postseason series since 2018.

But Crosby hasn't regressed. He leads Pittsburgh with 89 points (32 goals, 57 assists) in 79 games entering its season finale against the Washington Capitals at PPG Paints Arena on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, SNP, SNO, SNE).

Crosby could reach 90 points for a third straight season for the first time. He has clinched a 20th season of averaging at least a point per game, passing Wayne Gretzky (19) for the most in NHL history. In the past three seasons, from ages 35-37, Crosby has 276 points (107 goals, 169 assists) in 243 games (1.14 points per game).

In the 2024-25 NHLPA Player Poll, 663 players voted Crosby as the League’s most complete player for a sixth straight season, as well as the smartest and the one they’d pick to win one face-off.

"I know this has been a hard experience for Sid,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “It's been a hard experience for a lot of us. None of us are where we want to be or, quite honestly, where this organization has been accustomed to be in for the last 20-something years. So, I know that's hard on Sid. I think he's handled it extremely well. He controls what he can and that's his own approach every day, his determination to be the best. You guys see that on display every night as well as I do.

“I think the fact that he's been recognized by his peers might be the highest compliment that any player could ever receive. When your peers think that highly of you, I think that just speaks volumes because these guys play with, and most of them against him night in and night out. He earns that respect that he's gotten from his peers year in and year out. That's not something that's handed to anyone. He earns that through his performance and how hard he competes out there."

But Crosby, who has 41 points (20 goals, 21 assists) in his past 32 games, would point to his NHL career-worst rating of minus-22. He is plus-195 in 1,351 NHL games.

“I'm like minus-20 something,” Crosby said. “So, I look at that as, I don't like being on for goals against.”

And that level of responsibility is welcomed.

"I think it's critical. I think he's the standard for what it means to be a Pittsburgh Penguin,” Sullivan said. “When these guys get an opportunity to be around him, they see how he carries himself every day, there's no better mentor, there's no better example on how to be a pro than to watch him. Everything from how he lives his life to the choices he makes with his diet to how hard he trains off the ice to the detail and the work habits that he displays on the ice, he controls everything within his power to set himself up for success.

“That's a lot easier said than done. There aren't a lot of guys that are willing to go to that level of detail and that commitment to do that. That's one of the things that separates him from any other athlete that I've ever been around."

Crosby isn’t the same as he was. In the offseason, he’s less likely to take a lengthy break. To keep up, he needs to keep going.

“I used to take a lot more time off the ice and get away from it,” Crosby said. “I really enjoyed that. I thought it was important to get away. I don't think I have that luxury anymore at my age, just to put it away for that long, you know, put the skates away.”

That’s changed. The desire hasn’t.

Crosby wants to win, just as he'll want to Thursday despite a guarantee of heading to the offseason once the game ends.

“Ultimately, those things hopefully translate to wins,” Crosby said. “So, that's the motivation behind it, not necessarily always individual things. There's things you believe in that are going to help translate into wins. So, that's why you do it. You hope that's the case."