Even though the Pittsburgh Penguins missed the playoffs for a third-straight season last year, they still had some very productive players.
Captain Sidney Crosby led the team with 91 points in 80 games, which was 10th overall in the NHL. It was also his third-straight 90+ point season despite being in his late 30s. He's showing no signs of slowing down entering the 2025-26 season.
Rickard Rakell set career highs in goals (35) and points (70) last year, and looks poised to return for this season, even though he has been involved in a lot of trade rumors over the past several months. That can obviously change with one phone call, but that's how it's looking right now.
The same goes for Bryan Rust, who also set a career high in goals with 31 and has drawn a ton of interest from other teams this summer. They appreciate his championship pedigree and how he has developed into a strong leader. Still, Penguins general manager and president Kyle Dubas is being patient with the trade market.
With all of that in mind, let's try to project the Penguins' top three point producers for this year.
1. Sidney Crosby
Crosby is still one of the 10 best players in the sport, and it's not changing anytime soon. He did it all for the Penguins last year, even when they were out of the race going into the final weeks.
He had a ridiculous stretch to end the season, compiling 30 points in the Penguins' final 21 games to secure his 20th consecutive point-per-game season, the most in NHL history. Crosby had been tied with Wayne Gretzky at 19 before breaking the record this year.
He is the heartbeat of the Penguins, and as long as he stays healthy for this season, he will lead the team in points. He's also closing in on more history since he's only 36 points away from tying Mario Lemieux for the Penguins' franchise record in points. He needs 37 to pass him for that record and be eighth on the NHL's all-time scoring list.
Steve Yzerman and Marcel Dionne are seventh and sixth on the NHL's all-time scoring list, and Crosby will also pass both of them if he secures a fourth-straight 90-point season. He'd be on the cusp of breaking into the top five going into the 2026-27 season, which is the last year of his current contract that he signed last year.
2. Erik Karlsson
This pick may take aback some fans since Karlsson only had 53 points last season, but that was good for fourth on the team. He's also involved in trade rumors, but what if the Penguins decide to keep him for the entire 2025-26 season?
Someone has to put up points from the blue line, and Karlsson is easily the Penguins' best bet for that since he's their best defenseman and he's still really good at generating 5v5 offense. His 33 5v5 points were tied for fifth among all NHL defensemen last season.
He still has more to give and has a good chance of finishing in the 60-to-70-point range if a new staff can tweak a few aspects of his game. He will more than likely get the top-pairing minutes on the right side and will also get a good chunk of playing time with Crosby next season.
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3. Bryan Rust
I went back and forth between Rust and a few other players for this spot, but I chose Rust because I see him being a jack-of-all-trades player again, whether it's at 5v5, the power play, or on the penalty kill. He can play in any situation for the Penguins.
Rust has been a consistent 20+ goal player throughout his career and has also been a solid playmaker over the last four seasons. He has compiled at least 26 assists in each of the previous four years and matched his career high of 34 this past year.
He'll be another year older this year (33), but I see him having another strong year and finishing in the 60-point range if he stays fully healthy. Rakell, assuming he also doesn't get traded, will be right there with him, but I have Rust beating him out by a hair.
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