Sidney Crosby is willing the Pittsburgh Penguins to wins, and inching closer to history while doing it.

PITTSBURGH – No matter where the Pittsburgh Penguins sit in the standings, their captain will always give everything he can to help the team win. Sidney Crosby is far from waving the white flag on the 2023-24 season, even if the Penguins are on the verge of being eliminated from playoff contention.

There was a point in time, not that long ago, when it seemed Crosby and other members of the Penguins’ core had given up. Crosby hadn’t scored a goal in 11 straight games and only had six assists in that time. That's well below what he’s used to and threatening him to miss out on history.

If Crosby can secure a point-per-game pace for the 2023-24 season, he will tie Wayne Gretzky for an extremely rare achievement. Gretzky holds the record for most point-per-game seasons in NHL history with 19. Crosby is now just six points back of the magical number of 82.

There were moments during that 11-game goalless streak where it felt he may not hit the mark. Thanks to seven points in the Penguins’ last two games, Crosby is right back on track.

Crosby contributed to each of the Penguins’ four tallies against the Colorado Avalanche with a goal and three assists. Against the Carolina Hurricanes, Crosby picked up a pair of assists and an empty net goal for three more points.

Crosby has yet to miss a contest this year, playing in 71 games, scoring 35 goals and 41 assists for 76 total points. The Penguins have 11 games remaining in the year, which should be plenty for Crosby to notch at least six more points.

Five more goals are also possible to have him hit the 40-goal mark for just the third time in his career. Crosby's pace has him finishing with 40 goals and 47 assists for 87 total points.

If the Penguins aren’t playing playoff hockey, they may as well do everything they can to get Crosby his points.

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