Nineteen games into the 2025-26 season, things are going pretty well for the Pittsburgh Penguins. 

They are tied for third in the league in regulation wins with 10 as well as goal differential at plus-12. They sit third in the Metropolitan Division at 10-5-4 with 24 points, which puts them in a playoff position. They are also third in team goaltending and save percentage at .917.

There are a lot of things going right for this team up to this point. But perhaps the biggest early factor in their success is their special teams units.

As of Monday, the Pittsburgh's power play sits atop the NHL at 34.1 percent, while their penalty kill is now top-four at 85.7 percent. The penalty kill has killed off eight consecutive penalties and 24 of its last 25, and the power play has converted on seven of its last 16 opportunities - including three times against the Washington Capitals on Nov. 6.

Overall, they are the best special teams unit in the NHL.

Both units seem to have found new life under the Penguins' new coaching staff, and - in addition to the work that power play coach Todd Nelson and penalty kill coach Mike Stothers have put in - there is simply a lot of buy-in from players this season. 

"Those guys have done a great job just in terms of outlining the plan, communicating the plan, working with the players there on the special teams," head coach Dan Muse said. "I think the nice thing about both of them - and this is a credit to them and the work that they've put in is just the growth that you've been able to see since the beginning of the year. I think that's been pretty consistent, and that's what you want to have there with your special teams.

"It's such a big part of the game. But both guys have done an amazing job there just in terms of that preparation that goes into it for our side, looking at the opponent - the game-to-game, it always changes a bit based on your opponent - and just making sure that the players are in a position to go out there and execute."

 After a few abysmal seasons on the man advantage - which, arguably, cost them two consecutive playoff berths - the Penguins finally began to turn things around last season under former assistant coach David Quinn, now with ex-Penguins' head coach Mike Sullivan and the New York Rangers. Last season, the power play operated at pretty high efficiency as well, clicking at a 25.8 percent rate and finishing sixth in league rankings. 

But the power play has found a whole new level this season, and a lot of that can be credited to the work Nelson has put in. 

"Todd's been awesome," Rust said. "He's given us a blueprint on what to do, and I think he's also given us the leeway to kind of play with a little bit of a creativity. Which, I think there's obviously a fine line of getting too out of control. But I think we're in a good spot right now, and we're trying to continue to keep getting better and keep on building."

How Todd Nelson Has Transformed The Penguins' Power Play The Pittsburgh Penguins have the top power play in the NHL, and Todd Nelson is a major reason why.

Even if the power play trending in the right direction has been a continuation from last season, the same can not be said about the penalty kill. The unit started off well last season under longtime former assistant Mike Velucci, and it fell into the bottom half of the league during the latter part of the season. This year, it seems as though Stothers has the team playing a little more aggressively man-to-man, and he's been deploying some power play guys like Bryan Rust, Erik Karlsson, and Rickard Rakell due to their familiarity with power play reads.

Whatever the reasoning behind the success of both units this season, the early work is paying dividends for a team that not many expected would be anything more than a bottom-10 squad this season. 

"I think it has changed a little bit just based on injuries, so I think it's about everybody being on the same page, being organized, and executing," Sidney Crosby said. "For the most part, you don't want to change your game plan night-to-night, so I think that we're pretty consistent in how we want to approach it. And there are always little tweaks depending on who you play, but I think it's been pretty clear as far as the mindset of the group.

"That has a lot to do with the way [Nelson and Stothers] are structuring it and organizing it, and it's up to the guys to go out there and execute."

Takeaways: Penguins Put Together Strong Response Game, Take Home 3 Of 4 Points In NHL Global Series The Pittsburgh Penguins secured three out of four possible points at this weekend's NHL Global Series against the Nashville Predators - it couldn't have come at a better time.

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