Are the 2025-26 Penguins Echoing the Rise of 2006-07? The Parallels Are Hard to Ignore
There’s something brewing in Pittsburgh - and for fans who’ve been around long enough, it feels strangely familiar.
The Penguins are pushing hard to avoid missing the playoffs for a fourth straight season. That kind of drought hasn’t hit the franchise since the early 2000s, a stretch that spanned from 2001-02 to 2005-06 and included the lost 2004-05 season due to the NHL lockout.
Back then, the team was stuck at the bottom of the Atlantic Division, finishing dead last in each of those four seasons. It was a brutal era, marked by growing pains and frustration, but also one that laid the foundation for a new era of success.
Fast forward 20 years, and while the current Penguins haven’t bottomed out to quite the same degree, there’s a sense of déjà vu - and not the bad kind. In fact, this season’s team is starting to resemble the 2006-07 squad that turned the corner in a big way.
Let’s rewind for a second. That 2006-07 team had just come off a miserable 22-46-14 campaign in 2005-06, finishing with only 58 points.
But a year later, they flipped the script entirely, going 47-24-11 for 105 points and a second-place finish in the Atlantic. That group was a blend of youthful energy and veteran leadership, with a 19-year-old Sidney Crosby leading the NHL in scoring (120 points), rookie Evgeni Malkin making his debut, and a young Marc-Andre Fleury taking over the crease full-time.
There were also key role players like rookie Jordan Staal, second-year Max Talbot, and Ryan Whitney, plus a few veterans who brought experience and stability - names like Mark Recchi, John LeClair, Gary Roberts, and Sergei Gonchar. Even a teenage Kris Letang got a brief taste of NHL action that year before heading back to juniors.
That team would lose in the first round of the playoffs to the Ottawa Senators, but it was clear something special was forming. The very next season, they were in the Stanley Cup Final.
Now, look at the 2025-26 Penguins. The similarities are striking.
Crosby, Malkin, and Letang are still here - not as rising stars, but as seasoned leaders. They’ve been joined by veterans like Bryan Rust and Erik Karlsson, giving the team a core that mirrors the experience of that 2006-07 group. Meanwhile, young talents like Ben Kindel and Egor Chinakhov are stepping into the spotlight, much like Malkin and Staal did two decades ago.
The supporting cast has a familiar makeup, too. Players like Tommy Novak (28), Connor Dewar (26), and Blake Lizotte (28) bring energy and versatility to the bottom six, reminiscent of the youthful depth that helped define that earlier Penguins team. And just like in ’06-07, there’s a pipeline of prospects waiting in the wings - forwards Rutger McGroarty, Avery Hayes, and Tristan Broz; defenseman Harrison Brunicke; and goalie Sergei Murashov are all names to watch as the Penguins continue to reload.
Even the odds tell a story. The 2006-07 Penguins entered the season as longshots, with +6500 odds to win the Stanley Cup.
This year’s team? A staggering +30,000.
But here they are, sitting in second place in the Metropolitan Division - the same finish that 2006-07 team achieved - and looking more and more like a playoff lock.
And then there’s the most poetic part of all: two decades later, it’s still Sidney Crosby leading the charge, with Evgeni Malkin right behind him. In 2006-07, they finished first and second in team scoring with 120 and 85 points, respectively.
Now, in 2025-26, they’re still the heartbeat of the Penguins’ offense. That’s not just rare - it’s remarkable.
Of course, the big question looms: how far can this team go?
Back in ’06-07, the Penguins bowed out in the first round. But that loss was just the beginning of something bigger.
If history repeats itself - and this season ends with a hard-fought playoff exit - fans might be wise to look ahead rather than lament. Because if the next step mirrors the past, a trip to the Stanley Cup Final could be just around the corner.
For now, though, what’s clear is this: the Penguins are no longer a team clinging to the past. They’re building something again - and if it feels familiar, that’s because it is.