Pittsburgh Penguins Captain Sidney Crosby and Alternate Captain Evgeni Malkin have been named to the NHL Quarter-Century Team, which recognizes the top 25 players of the last 25 years, it was announced today by the National Hockey League.
The Quarter-Century Team was selected through a two-stage campaign that included input from NHL officials, followed by a league-wide fan vote.
Over the last quarter century from January 1, 2000 through December 31, 2024, Crosby ranks at the top of every major regular-season category, including games played (1,311, 14th), goals (602, 2nd), assists (1,035, 2nd), points (1,637, 1st), game-winning goals (93, 3rd) and overtime goals (22, 2nd).
One of the best playoff performers over the last quarter century, Crosby ranks sixth in games played (180), third in goals (71), first in assists (130), first in points (201), first in even-strength goals (51) and first in even-strength points (126) in the postseason.
The 10-time NHL All Star has enjoyed 25 years of individual and team awards, including three Stanley Cup Championships (2009, ’16, ’17), two Conn Smythe Trophies as the league’s playoff MVP (2016, ’17), two Art Ross Trophies as the NHL’s scoring leader (2007, ’14), two Hart Memorial Trophies as the league’s MVP (2007, ’14), three Ted Lindsay Awards as the most outstanding player as voted on by the players (2007, ’13, ’14), two Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophies as the NHL’s top goal scorer (2010, ’17) and one Mark Messier Leadership Award (2010).
The Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia native became the 26th member of the Triple Gold Club by winning a Stanley Cup, Olympic Gold Medal (2010, ’14) and World Championship (2015). Crosby is the only member of the Club to have captained all three teams to their respective titles and was just the ninth Canadian to accomplish the feat. Known for scoring the gold-medal winning overtime goal against the United States at the 2010 Olympic Games, referred to as the “Golden Goal,” Crosby has won gold medals at every international tournament with Team Canada, including the 4 Nations Face-Off (2025), World Cup of Hockey (2016), World Championship (2015) and World Junior Championship (2005).
Crosby recently completed his franchise-record 20th season in a Penguins uniform and 18th as captain, trailing only Detroit’s Steve Yzerman (19) as the longest-tenured captain in NHL history. Named one of the ‘100 Greatest NHL Players,’ the 37-year-old ranks ninth all-time with 1,687 points (625G-1,062A) in 1,352 games and just achieved his NHL-record 20th-consecutive point-per-game season, surpassing Wayne Gretzky (19).
Crosby was originally drafted first overall by Pittsburgh in the 2005 NHL Draft.
Malkin, also a three-time Stanley Cup Champion (2009, ’16, ’17), has been a dominant force in the NHL since making his debut in the 2006-07 season. Since then, his performance has placed him near the top of various major statistical categories since the turn of the century. The 6-foot-5, 210-pound forward has scored 514 goals, 832 assists and 1,346 points, which rank sixth, fifth and fourth, respectively, among all players since 2000. Additionally, his production in the playoffs has been nothing but exceptional as his 180 points (67G-113A) rank second behind Crosby among all players over the past 25 years. Malkin reached the 100-point mark during the 2007-08, ‘08-09 and ‘11-12 seasons, being one of eight players to do so three or more times since he entered the league. He also reached the 50-goal mark once during the ‘11-12 season.
The Magnitogorsk, Russia native has been recognized by the NHL for his extraordinary play over the course of his career receiving seven NHL All-Star nominations, five First-Team NHL All-Star awards, two Art Ross Trophies (2009, ’12), one Hart Trophy (2012), one Ted Lindsay Award (2012), one Calder Trophy (2007) awarded to the league’s rookie of the year as well as one Conn Smythe Trophy (2009). He’s also earned recognition within the organization, being voted Team MVP by his teammates on five separate occasions.
The forward is recognized as one of the most accomplished Russian-born players in NHL history. He ranks second in goals (514) and points (1,346) among all Russian-born players all-time, whereas his assists rank first (832). He is also one of just four Russian-born players all-time (Igor Larionov, Sergei Fedorov, Sergei Brylin) to win three Stanley Cup Championships.
Malkin was originally drafted by Pittsburgh in the first round (2nd overall) of the 2004 NHL Draft.
