The Pittsburgh Penguins are off to a good start to the 2025-26 NHL season. They currently sit with a 3-2-0 record and have seen hot starts from numerous different players, including Justin Brazeau and Artūrs Šilovs. They’ve also seen some younger players injected into their lineup who have brought a bit of a youth movement to the team. The goal for the club, like any other, is to make the 2025 playoffs. However, this team is projected to be one of the worst in the NHL, which means there’s going to be a ton of news and rumors surrounding the Penguins.
In this edition of Penguins News & Rumors, we’ll be looking at Sidney Crosby reaching another milestone, an update on Bryan Rust’s future with the club, and more.
When the Penguins signed Brazeau to a two-year, $3 million contract, there likely weren’t a ton of people who would have guessed he’d be off to this hot of a start. So far through five games, he has four goals. That already puts him only seven goals off his career high of 11, which he scored last season with the Boston Bruins and Minnesota Wild.
If Brazeau can score 15 goals this season, he’ll be producing way above his expected value. He’s signed to a bottom-six valued contract because that’s typically what he is. However, sometimes there are players who flourish under new systems, and he may be one of them.
On October 14 against the Anaheim Ducks, Crosby continued his climb up the ranks of the all-time assist list. With his assist on Rickard Rakell’s first-period goal, he moved ahead of Steve Yzerman for ninth-most assists in NHL history with 1,063. Now in sole possession of ninth, he’s just 13 behind Adam Oates for eighth on the list with 1,065.
Crosby’s pursuit of number one on the list is nearly impossible, seeing how Wayne Gretzky has 900 more than him. But he still has a chance to reach fourth or fifth. Obviously, this will depend on his production and how long he continues to play. As of right now, he’s 90 assists away from tying Jaromir Jagr for fifth and 104 away from Ray Bourque for fourth. If he can play another handful of years, there’s a good chance he can pass Mark Messier for third on the list, as he sits just 128 back. Regardless, it’s an incredible accomplishment for him to continue climbing multiple all-time categories.
After months of trade speculation regarding Rust, it looks like the Penguins may decide to keep him after all. According to Joshua Yohe of The Athletic, they may pivot to trading other players before electing to move Rust. Yohe wrote about it in his article, “Bold NHL 2025-26 season predictions, from blockbuster trades to breakout players and more” (Josh Yohe, The Athletic, 10/11/2025). Here’s what he had to say:
“There will be enormous amounts of trade speculation around the Penguins this season. Erik Karlsson and Rickard Rakell may well be traded by the deadline. Despite the good start, this is a rebuilding team. I have a feeling, though, that Rust will remain for a multitude of reasons. He’s a popular man in the organization, to say the least.”
It looks like the Penguins want to move on from Karlsson and Rakell before making a decision on Rust. Plus, because of what he brings to the locker room and the overall roster, they feel it could be worth keeping him. Truthfully, that makes a lot of sense. They have several young forwards like Ben Kindel and Rutger McGroarty who are going to need to be surrounded by veterans. So, keeping Rust may be a very smart decision.
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