The era of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin has produced a number of memorable
moments in Pittsburgh Penguins history. From the 2008 playoff run, which saw
the team come within two wins of winning the Stanley Cup, only to hoist it the
next season, and the back-to-back Cups in 2016 and 2017.

The Penguins have also had a number of individual performances over the last
decade which people still talk about. Most have come from Crosby and Malkin,
but a few have come from Kris Letang and Marc-Andre Fleury. Attempting to rank
each season would be near impossible, so what if it';s narrowed down to the top
 five individual performances, including playoffs, by Penguins players since
2008, and why do they rank where they are? That';s what we did.Number 5: Sidney
 Crosby';s 2013 Lockout Season

The fact this list begins with Crosby';s 56 points - 15 goals, 41 assists - in
36 games during the 48-game lockout-shortened 2013 season should tell you
everything. The Penguins have seen a lot of memorable seasons over the last 10
years.Had he not suffered a broken jaw in 2013, it';s likely Crosby would have
a third Art Ross to his name. (Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports)

Coming off back-to-back concussion-riddled seasons which caused him to miss
over 100 games, many didn';t know what to expect from Crosby. Would he ever
return to his elite status, or would it prove to be too much for the then
25-year-old?

After a subpar first seven games of the season (seven points), Crosby quickly
answered the questions from his doubters, as he posted 49 points over the final
 29 games he played. This included 24 points in 14 February games and 25 points
 in 15 games during March, a month where the Penguins went 15-0-0.

Crosby';s regular season ended during the final March game after an errant
Brooks Orpik slapshot hit him in the face, breaking his jaw. Despite missing
the final 12 games, Crosby finished third in scoring with 56 points, four
behind Martin St. Louis of the Tampa Bay Lightning.  His points per game of
1.56 was best in the league by .31, as St. Louis posted a 1.25 mark. His 41
assists were second in the league, but his assist per games mark of 1.14 was
the best - Letang was second with .94. At five-on-five, Crosby recorded 38
points, two behind Eric Staal despite playing almost 190 fewer minutes. His
P/60 of 4.19 was ahead of Staal';s 3.3, and his A/60 of 2.87 was also tops in
the league.

The Penguins controlled 56.64 percent of the shot attempts with Crosby on the
ice at five-on-five. He was also on the ice for a whopping 47 goals for,
compared to just 19 against for a GF% of 71.2. On a teammate basis, the line of
 Crosby, Chris Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis was among the best in the league,
controlling 56.3 percent of shot attempts together, 10th in the league among
lines with 300 minutes together. Their GF% of 75.6  was second in the league,
just behind the line of Tyler Seguin, Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron of the
 Boston Bruins.

Data: Corsica

Not only did breaking his jaw cost him a scoring title, it also cost him the
Hart Trophy as the league MVP, which he finished second in voting behind
Alexander Ovechkin of the Capitals - a 2013 piece from THW explained why it was
 the wrong choice.

If you refuse to accept that the award goes to the player most valuable to his
team, then the production quantity is the key element. If Crosby plays a full
season he decimates Ovechkin in that category. You can't hold Crosby breaking
his jaw against him, if anything, his production equaling Ovechkin's in 12 less
 games is all the more reason to vote for Crosby.

While the voters didn';t see Crosby as the MVP, the players did, as he won his
second career Ted Lindsay Award. He was also named to the NHL';s All-Star team.

Crosby missed the first game of the playoffs, but he returned in game two,
scoring two goals. In five games during the Penguins six-game first round
victory over the New York Islanders, Crosby recorded nine points. The second
round against the Ottawa Senators was more of the same, but this time he added
a hat trick in game two for good measure while totalling six points in five
games. That was the extent of his scoring that postseason, though, as the
Penguins ran into a red-hot Bruins team and scored just two goals while being
swept. It was the first time in his career where he was shutout over an entire
postseason series. Overall, Crosby finished with 15 points in 14 playoff games.

This was also the final season in a three-year run where Crosby averaged at or
above 1.5 points per game - while playing just 99 games, due to injury, he
managed to produce 159 points. For his efforts, he earns number five on this
list.Number 4: Kris Letang';s 2015-16

In December 2015, the Penguins were at a crossroads, and it seemed the team was
 no longer a championship contender. That all changed once head coach Mike
Johnston was fired and replaced by Mike Sullivan. The team took off, especially
 its core players, but nobody was more important than Letang.Kris Letang played
 the best hockey of his career following the hiring of Mike Sullivan in
2015-16. (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Letang was playing at a Norris caliber level in 2014-15 before a late hit from
Shane Doan led to a concussion, ending his season. In 69 games he recorded 54
points while playing just under 25 and a half minutes a game.

The effects of the concussion seemed to linger entering 2015-16, as Letang,
like most of the Penguins, struggled out of the gate. He recorded just 14
points in his first 25 games while playing more than 26 minutes a night.

He missed the first two weeks of Sullivan';s tenure with an injury, but once he
 returned on Dec. 26, his season turned a corner. In 46 games under Sullivan,
Letang recorded 53 points (15 goals, 38 assists, 1.15 points per game) while
seeing his ice time increase to just over 27 minutes a night. From Dec. 26 to
the end of the season, not only was this the best among defensemen by nine
points (Brent Burns was second with 44), Letang was also fifth among all
skaters in points, ahead of players such as John Tavares, Erik Karlsson and
Ovechkin.

Overall, he recorded 67 points (16 goals, 51 assists) in 71 games - third among
 defensemen - while finishing fourth in Norris voting. His era adjusted point
total of 75 was also third among defensemen. In addition, Letang';s defensive
point shares of 4.3 was fifth among defensemen.

Letang';s surge also played a big role in getting Crosby back to his old self,
as Mike Necciai wrote in Feb. 2016.

Crosby and Letang have recorded a little over 134-minutes of even-strength ice
time together since returning from the holiday break on December 26th. In that
time, they've recorded 12 goals-for to only six goals-against and a Corsi-for
percentage of 65.3-percent. They're clicking at nearly six goals-for per 60
minutes of play, which is an unbelievable accomplishment in today's NHL.
Without Letang, Crosby has recorded just five goals-for to four goals-against
in a hair over 131-minutes.

Letang had 37 points at even strength, third best among defensemen with at
least 1,200 minutes played. Additionally, with him on the ice at
five-on-five, the Penguins controlled 54.6 percent of the shot attempts,
eighth best among defensemen with the same minute threshold. So, how did he
stack up against the rest of the league?

Chart by @ChartingHockey

He was paired most often with Olli Määttä, and in 54 games and just under
675 minutes together, the pair was among the best. At five-on-five the pairing
had a CF% of 55.37, seventh best among pairs who played at least 500 minutes
together. The Penguins also scored 36 goals with the pair on the ice, compared
to just 23 against (61 percent goals for) good for fifth in the league.

Letang turned his play up another level for the playoffs, as he put on a Conn
Smythe Trophy-worthy performance, anchoring the Penguins blue line to the
Stanley Cup. Despite being suspended one game during the team';s second-round
series against the Capitals, for his hit on Marcus Johansson, Letang put up 15
points (three goals, 12 assists) in 23 games while skating almost 29 minutes a
night. He also scored the Cup-clinching goal during the second period of game
six. The point total was second among defensemen, behind Burns'; 24. Another
fact from Letang';s playoff heroics? He reportedly underwent foot surgery prior
 to game one of the Stanley Cup Final.

At five-on-five, the Penguins controlled 54 percent of the shot attempts with
Letang on the ice, third among defensemen with at least 200 minutes played. The
 Penguins also scored 22 goals for, compared to just 16 against when Letang was
 on the ice. This is also where the pairing we see today of Letang and Brian
Dumoulin got their start. In 278 five-on-five minutes together, the pairing
controlled 56.84 percent of the shot attempts, second best among pairings with
over 100 minutes played.

Without Letang, it';s likely the Penguins miraculous turnaround doesn';t
happen.Number 3: Evgeni Malkin';s 2011-12

Returning from major injuries and posting big numbers seems to be a theme here,
 but alas, elite players tend to amazing things. Instead of a return from a
concussion, it';s a return from a torn ACL.Evgeni Malkin';s 2011-12 season saw
a triumphant return from a knee injury. (Tom Turk/THW)

Malkin was going through a bit of a down season in 2010-11 (37 points in 43
games), and he missed a few games with a knee injury before it finally gave way
 during a game against the Sabres in February 2011 after getting tied up with
Tyler Myers in the corner. The result was a torn ACL and MCL, which kept him
out for the season.

Malkin returned in time for the 2011-12 season opener, and he hadn';t missed a
beat. With Crosby missing all but 22 games due to concussion symptoms, Malkin
was now the heart of the offense and he didn';t disappoint, posting 109 points
(50 goals, 59 assists) in 75 games. His efforts captured the second scoring
title of his career, his first Hart Trophy, his first Ted Lindsay award and he
was named to the All-Star team.

His points per game of 1.45 was just behind Crosby';s mark of 1.68. His goals
per game of .67 and assists per game of .79 were second and fourth in the
league, respectively. Malkin led the league in five-on-five points with 68, his
 P/60 of 3.46  and his P1/60 of 3.09 also led the NHL. Overall at even
strength, Malkin was first with 75 points, including 38 goals, behind Steven
Stamkos'; 48. He also had three months where he posted 20 or more points
(December, 20, February, 20 and March, 23) along with a league-leading three
hat tricks. His era adjusted points came in at 122 (57 goals, 65 assists), 13
more than Stamkos'; 109. He also became the second fastest Russian to reach 500
 career points (413 games) behind Ovechkin who did it in 373 games.

With Malkin on the ice at five-on-five, the Penguins controlled 56.6 percent of
 the shot attempts and scored 60.5 percent of the goals (75 for, 49 against) -
the 75 goals for remains a career-high for Malkin. He also kept the powerplay
afloat despite the absence of Crosby, finishing second in the league with 34
power-play points. He was also on the ice for 82 percent of the Penguins';
goals with the man-advantage (47/57).

Malkin anchored one of the better five-on-five lines in the league, as the line
 of Chris Kunitz, Malkin and James Neal controlled 59.62 percent of the shot
attempts, third in the league among lines with at least 500 minutes together,
and their GF% of 60.3 was seventh in the league (44 for, 29 against). The line
also drew a league-high 63 penalties.

The turnaround from Malkin was impressive considering he tore his ACL less than
 a calendar year before, but what was more impressive was how he began to
evolve as the season progressed, as Mike Colligan wrote in a December 2011
article.

But a few weeks ago something changed. Malkin started playing the relentless
style of defense fans have come to expect out of shutdown center Jordan
Staal.  What sparked his sudden commitment to defense?

"It's my job," he said.  "I play center, and sometimes I need to backcheck and
 not just forecheck."

Come playoff time, he played up to expectations, recording eight points in the
Penguins'; first-round loss to the Philadelphia Flyers in six games. The lack
of playoff success was hardly Malkin';s fault, though. As the defense and
goalie Marc-Andre Fleury suffered meltdowns of epic proportions, allowing 28
goals in the series defeat.

The Penguins played almost the entire season without Crosby, while also missing
 Letang and Jordan Staal for long stretches, but Malkin was a man on a mission
and made sure his name wasn';t forgotten among the games elite.Number 2: Sidney
 Crosby';s 2010-11

Sidney Crosby was coming off a 2009-10 season which saw him score 50 goals and
reach the 100 point milestone for the fourth time in his career (109) in
addition to scoring the gold medal-winning goal at the 2010 Winter Olympic
games in Vancouver. It seemed in his fifth season, Crosby had reached the
height of his dominance.

Then came the 2010-11 season. He started slowly by his lofty standards (15
points in 13 games) but then went on a tear of the likes the NHL hadn';t seen
in the modern era. From Nov. 5 to Dec. 28, Crosby had a 25 game point streak
which saw him record 50 points, including 26 goals. The streak was ultimately
ended Dec. 29 against the Islanders.Before suffering a season-ending
concussion, Sidney Crosby was having a season for the ages in 2010-11. (Icon
SMI)

With 65 points in 39 games before New Years, he was running away with the Art
Ross Trophy, and likely the Hart, but after two January games where he took
hits to the head in consecutive games, Crosby';s season was cut short due to a
concussion, which was only the start of a ten-month-long saga. Overall, the
23-year-old finished with 66 points in 41 games.

So if he only played half a season, why is it number two on this list? Because
that';s how dominant his season was.

Crosby scored 32 goals and 34 assists in his 41 games in 2010-11, giving him
per game rates of .78 goals and .83 assists, first and third in the league
respectively. His points per game of 1.61 was .34 better than eventual Art Ross
 winner Daniel Sedin';s mark of 1.27. Over a full season, he was on pace to
reach 64 goals and 68 assists for a total of 132 points, 28 more than Sedin';s
104.

At the time Crosby was injured, he had a 10 point lead on Stamkos (66 to 56)
for the scoring title. It took Stamkos until Jan. 26 to pass Crosby for the
lead, and it took until Feb. 10 for him to fall out of the top three. Despite
playing just two games after Dec. 31, Crosby finished 30th in points and 15th
in goals.

Crosby';s five-on-five P/60 of 3.83 was the best in the league, ahead of
Sedin';s 2.99. His P1/60 of 3.12 was also ahead of Sedin';s 2.36. Crosby
averaged almost a point-per-game at five-on-five alone (38 points in 41 games),
 expand it to even strength and he averaged 1.21 p/game at even strength (46
points in 41 games). His 21 ES goals came in just 636 minutes, in comparison,
Jerome Iginla led the league with 27 ESG and needed 707 more minutes (1343) to
accomplish the feat.

With Crosby at five-on-five, the Penguins controlled 53.1 percent of the shot
attempts and scored 63.5 percent of the goals (40 for, 23 against).
Individually, Crosby had 55 high danger shot attempts, drew 19 penalties and
gave the puck away just 14 times while also taking it away 14 times. His most
common linemates were Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis, and the trio played 304 minutes
 together, controlled 51.4 percent of shot attempts and scored 73 percent of
the goals (19 for, seven against), the latter was the best among lines with at
least 300 minutes.

About the 25-game streak mentioned earlier? Here';s the breakdown.

During the streak, he had 15 more points than the next closest player, Martin
St. Louis (50 to 35), and had seven more goals than Stamkos (26 to 19). 18 of
his 26 goals also came at even strength.

Crosby scored a goal in 18 of the 25 games while recording two hat tricks. He
had an assist in 17 of 25 games and recorded both a goal and assist on 10
occasions. Out of the 25 games, he had 16 multi-point efforts (64 percent),
including five games with three points and two games with four points. He
earned one of the NHL';s "Stars of the Week" four times during the streak and
was named the First Star of the Month in both November and December.

Crosby also set the NHL record for fewest games played (41) by a player who led
 his team in points (66), as he had 16 more than Letang, who played all 82
games.

Overall, Crosby recorded a point in 35 of 41 games (85 percent), he had two or
more points 20 times (49 percent) and his nine games with three points were
second behind Corey Perry, who did it on 10 occasions.

While his season was cut short, Crosby accomplished in half a season what many
fail to do in a full 82 game slate.Number 1: Evgeni Malkin';s 2008-09

While Malkin may not be on the list of the 100 greatest players of all time,
he';s number one here.

While the Penguins struggled for most of the 2008-09 season (they were tenth in
 the Eastern Conference when they hired Dan Bylsma on Feb. 15, 2009) its stars,
 namely Malkin, paid no attention to the memo.Ten years later, Evgeni Malkins
2008-09 season remains the best by a Pittsburgh Penguin since 2008. (Amy Irvin
/ The Hockey Writers)

After putting up 106 points in his second NHL season and bringing the Penguins
within two wins of the Stanley Cup in 2007-08, Malkin felt it wasn';t enough.
He came back in 2008-09 to record 113 points (35 goals, 78 assists) in the
regular season, en route to his first career Art Ross, and then added another
36 in 24 playoff games, leading the Penguins to their first championship since
1992, capturing the Conn Smythe in the process. Overall, he had 149 total
points in 106 games or 1.41 points per game.

While the Penguins sat out of a playoff spot for most of the first half, Malkin
 did his best to keep the team afloat as he recorded 70 points (19 goals, 51
assists) in 48 games, giving him a 10 point lead over Crosby for the scoring
title. Despite his production slipping slightly in the second half of the
season with 43 points (16 goals, 27 assists) in 34 games, he maintained his
lead in the scoring race. In fact, he never relinquished the lead after Nov.
16, 2008.

Malkin averaged a point per game or better in every month, with his worst
showing being six points in six April games. He also averaged a point per game
or better against every division in the NHL, with his best being 31 points in
20 games against the Southwest division and his worst being eight points in
seven games against the Central.

His longest point streak of the season was a 13 game run between Oct. 16 to
Nov. 15, where he recorded 27 points (six goals, 21 assists). Additionally, he
had a nine-game streak where he recorded 19 points (five goals, 14 assists) and
 a ten-game streak where he recorded 14 points (five goals, nine assists).

Malkin';s 35 goals secured the third consecutive 30 goal season to begin his
career and his 78 assists led the league, as did his .95 assists per game. He
recorded 42 of them at five-on-five for a 2.11 A/60, best in the league and it
remains the best number of his career. Malkin';s five-on-five P/60 of 2.76 was
seventh among forwards with 600 minutes played. Malkin recorded a point in 65
of 82 games - 79 percent of games, including 32 multi-point games - tied for
first in the league with Crosby and Ovechkin. He had 11 games with three or
more points and five games with four or more points. His longest pointless
streak of the season was two games (five times).

While he was far from a possession darling (46.1 CF%), the Penguins scored 68
goals with Malkin on the ice, tied for first among forwards with Pavel Datsyuk,
 compared to 43 against (60.2 percent).

After the Penguins rallied to make the playoffs, Malkin was a different animal.
 As he recorded over a point-per-game in every round, with nine in six games
against the Flyers in round one, 10 in seven games against the Capitals in the
second round, nine in four games against the Carolina Hurricanes in the
Conference Final - including a memorable backhand spin-o-rama to cap off a hat
trick in game two - and lastly, eight points in seven games in the Stanley Cup
Final against the Detroit Red Wings. All in all, Malkin finished with 36 points
 in 24 games (1.5 per game), five more than the second place Crosby, to win the
 Conn Smythe as the playoffs top player.

It seems he predicted his and the Penguins destiny before the playoffs began.

Even before this year';s playoffs began, forward Bill Guerin knew that Malkin
 was up to the challenge this spring.

"He told us before the playoffs started that he was going to lead us to the
Stanley Cup," Guerin said. "That kid is an amazing competitor and amazing
player. He has a lot of character and a lot of heart."

In a list full of returns from injuries, seasons of what could';ve been and
midseason coaching changes, these Penguins stand above the rest.

*Advanced statistics from Corsica.Hockey and Natural Stat Trick

The post Peerless Penguins: 5 Unforgettable Seasons Since 2008 appeared first
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