By The Numbers: Crosby’s place in NHL history at 37
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Sidney Crosby celebrated his birthday on Wednesday as he and the Pittsburgh Penguins continue to work on a contract extension that would keep the 37-year-old in Pittsburgh for the remainder of his Hall-of-Fame career.
The Cole Harbour, N.S., native will likely go down as one of the best players in National Hockey League history. Since entering the league in 2005-06, Crosby has scored 592 goals and 1,596 points in 1,272 games. He is the Penguins all-time leader in games played and trails only Mario Lemieux for the franchise lead in goals, assists, and points.
Penguins All-Time Leaders
| Player | Games | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mario Lemieux | 915 | 690 | 1,033 | 1,723 |
| Sidney Crosby | 1,272 | 592 | 1.004 | 1,596 |
Crosby has a chance to overtake Lemieux in all three categories if he remains in Pittsburgh, as he trails by just 98 goals, 29 assists, and 127 points.
Penguins president and general manager Kyle Dubas made it clear in April his top priority for the off-season was getting Crosby signed to a new deal.
“I think he should finish his career with the Pittsburgh Penguins,” Dubas said at the time. "How long that is? I’m not going to put any limits on Sidney Crosby. He’s capable of great things and is still performing at an extraordinarily high level.”
Crosby is coming off his best season since 2018-19, scoring 42 goals and 52 assists over 82 games. It marked the second straight season Crosby has tallied 90-plus points while playing a full 82-game season.
At 1,596 points, Crosby ranks 10th in NHL history and will likely pass Joe Sakic (1,641) for ninth with a full season in 2024-25.
All-Time NHL Scoring Leaders
| Player | Games | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne Gretzky | 1,487 | 894 | 1,963 | 2,857 |
| Jaromir Jagr | 1,733 | 766 | 1,155 | 1,921 |
| Mark Messier | 1,756 | 694 | 1,193 | 1,887 |
| Gordie Howe | 1,767 | 801 | 1,049 | 1,850 |
| Ron Francis | 1,731 | 549 | 1,249 | 1,798 |
| Marcel Dionne | 1,348 | 731 | 1,040 | 1,771 |
| Steve Yzerman | 1,514 | 692 | 1,063 | 1,755 |
| Mario Lemieux | 915 | 690 | 1,033 | 1,723 |
| Joe Sakic | 1,378 | 625 | 1,016 | 1,641 |
| Sidney Crosby | 1,272 | 592 | 1,004 | 1,595 |
On a per-game basis, Crosby ranks even higher on the all-time list, coming in eighth at 1.25 points per game or 102 points over a full 82-game season. If the three-time Stanley Cup winner can continue his current scoring pace, he could finish in the top-five in career scoring, depending on the length of his next contract extension.
If Crosby plays two more seasons and scores at his career pace, he will finish the 2025-26 season with 1,800 points, passing Sakic, Lemieux (1,723), Steve Yzerman (1,755), Marcel Dionne (1,771), and Ron Francis (1,798) for fifth all-time.
With three more seasons at his career pace, the two-time Hart Trophy winner would pass Gordie Howe (1,850) and Mark Messier (1,887) for third in NHL history behind only Jaromir Jagr (1,921) and Wayne Gretzky (2,875).
As Crosby searches for his fourth Stanley Cup, the two-time Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy and two-time Conn Smythe winner has a chance to climb the all-time leaderboards and cement himself as one of the greatest players in NHL history.