Quick Reaction: Where In The World Did Pittsburgh Come From?!

(Photo courtesy of nhl.com)

I was doing my weekly standings check-in when all of the sudden I realized the Pittsburgh Penguins are number one in the MassMutual East Division. Granted, at this time, they are only one point ahead of Washington, but still. I predicted that they would make the playoffs, but I had them slotted in the third spot. There is still a decent chunk of games left, so they could drop. If you couldn’t tell, I’m impressed. 

Last season, the Penguins left the bubble quickly after the Canadiens beat them in three games. After winning back-to-back Stanley Cups, it only made sense that the team would trail off a little. They have still been quite good, but the Vegas, Washington, Tampa Bay, Carolina of the league kind of took over. 

When the Penguins are winning, one factor has to be true: Sidney Crosby is not slowing down. The Canadian captain now trails only Wayne Gretzy and Gordie Howe for total point-per-game seasons in NHL history. The forward is playing in his 16th consecutive point-per-game season. That’s unheard of.

Crosby can’t take all of the credit though. The team itself has been showing up and getting healthy, and that’s really all you can ask for going into the final stretch of the regular season.

Although they haven’t clinched a spot in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs just yet, I’m sure we will see them there.