Letang Caps Off 1,200th Game with Overtime Winner

The Penguins kicked off 2026 with a bang as Kris Letang, who skated in his 1,200^th career game on Thursday night at PPG Paints Arena, scored the overtime winner in a 4-3 victory over the Red Wings.

“It's always fun when you have a game, like a milestone game, and you do something you can remember,” Letang said with a laugh. “Like, 1,000 games, I was pretty silent. You know, you have all the nerves, the family, the ceremony. So, it was fun to cap it off.”

His teammates rushed off the bench to celebrate with Letang after he blasted home a pass from none other than his longtime teammate, Sidney Crosby.

Letang became the 40th defenseman in NHL history, and just the third active blueliner, to reach 1,200 games played. He also became just the 28th player, and seventh defenseman, in NHL history to reach 1,200 games with one team.

“Just jubilation,” said Blake Lizotte, who also got in the goal column. “1,200th game tonight, it's only fitting he scored. He's such a huge part of our team, and everybody was going nuts for him.”

Letang, who holds every single significant team record for a defenseman, has logged heavy minutes for the last two decades while playing an important role on both sides of the puck. He’s been through a lot to reach 1,200 games, and couldn’t have gotten to this point alone.

“Family is a big thing. You need a support cast,” Letang said. “My wife, my kids, they support what I do, and it comes with a lot of sacrifice. It comes with different things. You need that support. And obviously, having an organization like the Penguins is just special. All the care they put into me and everything they've done to make sure I could rehab the different injuries or health problems I’ve had over the years. That's the key.”

Letang was awarded the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy in 2022-23 after recovering from his second stroke, the first occurring in 2014. Back in April, he underwent surgery for closure of a patent foramen ovale (PFO; small hole in the heart).

“I think it's been well documented that Kris has dealt with a lot,” Penguins President of Hockey Operations and GM Kyle Dubas said. :Very serious health challenges, injury challenges during his time in the league. And you see the work ethic and the commitment and everything that he puts into getting himself ready to play. You see how open and honest he is when he's not at the standard that he expects. And you see someone that when they don't feel they're at that standard, they continue to really work at it. And he sets a great example.

“I think it's been interesting to have younger people around here sort of marvel at the amount of time he spends here at the rink, preparing himself and doing everything he can late in his career, year 20 here, to be able to continue to produce.”

Letang’s longtime teammates marvel, too.

“To see that that number, and to know how much he takes the defensive side serious, it's not always easy,” Crosby said after Letang hit 600 career assists earlier this season. “That's a hard game to play, and he's created a lot of offense, and we've been on the receiving end of those passes and then those plays. So, it's a great number, and something that speaks to how hard he works and what kind of effort and what he puts into the game.”

The Penguins blue line had another big milestone on Thursday night, with Erik Karlsson becoming the ninth-fastest defenseman in NHL history to record 900 career points, reaching that number in his 1,124^th career game.

“He's a special player,” Letang said. “Every time you watch him play, he can make something out of nothing. I had the chance to see him play in Ottawa for a long time, and he was always somebody who amazed you. He's gonna reach 1,000 pretty quick, too. So, it's fun to watch him play.”

Karlsson’s milestone assist came at a critical point in the game, setting up Lizotte’s tally to give Pittsburgh a 3-2 lead just minutes after Detroit had a goal called back for offsides.

“At that point in the game, you're not really taking a ton of risks in a tie game,” Lizotte said. “You're just trying to be in the O-zone and play simple and get pucks to the net. And I saw [Karlsson] ended up with it, and he usually finds a way to get it there. He's really good at that, so I just drove the net and found a loose puck.”

The Red Wings did find an answer in the final minutes of regulation on the power play as Alex DeBrincat found a loose puck and got it past Arturs Silovs, which tied the game at 3-3.

In overtime, the Penguins didn’t get discouraged and stuck to their game, with Letang putting home the pass from Crosby less than a minute in for their third straight win.

“I think it's always good for your confidence, especially with the stretch that we've been through,” Letang said. “We've learned with the games that we played in that stretch. I think tonight, we didn't force anything. We kind of got what we worked for, and we were waiting for our chances. And I think that was the recipe tonight, and I think that's how we have to look at it.”