Penguins' Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang match pro sports record for longevity
When the Pittsburgh Penguins opened their 2022-23 regular season on Thursday night — a 6-2 win vs. the Arizona Coyotes — it was the 17th consecutive season that the trio of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang played together.
On the surface, that number alone is impressive.
It also tied a pro sports record for the longest tenure of any three players with a single team in pro sports history. It tied them with the New York Yankees trio of Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada.
Given that all three Penguins players remain under contract for several more years — Malkin and Letang just signed new contract extensions over the summer — they seem almost certain to break that record next season. Considering the lengths of their current contracts, their consistently high level of play and the fact they do not seem close to retiring, there is a chance they could reach 20 years together.
It has been an extremely successful run for that core in Pittsburgh.
The Penguins have made the playoffs every season the trio has been together, played in five Conference Finals, four Stanley Cup Finals and won three Stanley Cups, including back-to-back championships in the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons.
They have also been among the best players in the league every year.
Since they played their first games together during the 2007-08 season, no NHL team has scored more goals (3,618) won more regular-season games (682), more playoff games (102) or more championships (three) — quite a run of success.
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