The 2025-2026 Pittsburgh Penguins are serious Stanley Cup contenders, and they deserve that role.
The Stanley Cup is the NHL’s most prestigious trophy. Over 110 years the Stanley Cup has been awarded to 27 of the league’s 32 teams according to the NHL records website.
The Penguins are no strangers to the Stanley Cup having won it five times since joining the league in 1967. However, they have not made a Stanley Cup final since winning it all in 2017.
This year there is a chance to change that. The Penguins play against seven other teams in the Metropolitan division in the Eastern conference. The teams who finish top three in their division automatically make the playoffs. There are two wild card spots per conference, two teams from the Western and two teams from the Eastern. These four teams take the “Wild Card” spots, rounding out the 16-team playoff.
At the midway point of the season, the Penguins have managed to consistently hold a playoff spot. Either in the top three or Wild Card. This is the most success the Penguins have had in years. The recent success can be attributed to the General Manager Kyle Dubas and the newly hired Head Coach Dan Muse as well as the contributions of the players.
Many big moves have been made by Dubas. Goaltender Tristan Jarry and forward Sam Poulin were traded to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for goaltender Stuart Skinner and defenseman Brett Kulak, both have been great additions to the star-studded roster. Dubas also traded forward Danton Heinen to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for forward Egor Chinakhov who scored five goals in his first 12 games with the Penguins and has scored 22 in 29 games with the Penguins.
Their recent success can also be attributed to the key players on the team such as forward Sidney Crosby, the team’s long-standing captain and three-time Stanley Cup winner. As well as defensemen Erik Karlsson and forward Blake Lizotte who both have been crucial this season on the penalty kill.
Over the week of 19-25 of January, the Penguins went on a road trip out west to face the Seattle Kraken as well as the three western Canadian teams being the Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks. The Penguins won all four of those games scoring 19 goals in total over those four games.
In the last week of December into the first week of January, the Penguins went on a six-game win streak, defeating menacing opponents such as the Carolina Hurricanes and the Detroit Red Wings. The Penguins also beat the first-ranked in the league Colorado Avalanche, 7-2 on March 16. A win like this against a Stanley Cup favorite team like the Avalanche makes a Cup final run all the more realistic for the Penguins.
This team has maintained great and consistent performances, and if they keep up their current play they will certainly be a threat in the playoffs.
