The Most Popular Penguins Over the Last Decade
The Pittsburgh Penguins have had plenty of popular players, but some have stood out more than others.
When someone thinks of the Pittsburgh Penguins, it’s valid if the first person they think of is Mario Lemieux.
He was one of the greatest to ever play hockey and a Penguins’ icon, but Lemieux hasn’t played since December of 2005.
Sidney Crosby has taken over as the franchise icon since he broke into the league just a few months before Lemieux decided to hang up the skates one last time.
Since then, Crosby has gone on to become one of the most talked about players in hockey, and according to BetPennsylvania.com, the most popular player in the Penguins organization.
Bet Pennsylvania looked into AhRefs and Google trends and came to the conclusion that Crosby has carried the brunt of the popularity for the past decade.
What about some of the other most popular Penguins over the last 10 years?
The franchise’s greatest goalie, Marc-Andre Fleury slots in second place, not only because of his long and successful tenure with the Penguins, but how well he’s performed since leaving.
A Vezina Trophy winner in 2021, Fleury is the third winningest goalie of all-time with 544, behind only Martin Brodeur (691) and Patrick Roy (551).
The next couple of spots on the list were fairly expected; the other members of the core Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang reached third and fifth respectively.
Stanley Cup Champion Phil Kessel found himself between Malkin and Letang in fourth, and being a fan favorite, plus the NHL’s iron man will leave you with a popular legacy.
Beyond the top five, things get interesting; Matt Murray is sixth and fans in Pittsburgh weren’t too fond of the two-time champion upon his departure.
Following Murray is James Neal; in parts of four seasons with the Penguins, Neal picked up 184 points (89G-95A), but has often been forgotten when discussing the early to mid 2010s.
Jeff Carter rolls into the eighth spot in this popularity contest, but is arguably here for the infamy.
Fans have not been happy with Carter since Ron Hextall signed him to a two-year contract extension in January of 2022.
Jake Guentzel and Brooks Orpik round out Bet Pennsylvania’s top 10 list; there were definitely some obvious choices, but a couple head scratchers.
Make sure you bookmark Inside the Penguins for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more!
- Subscribe to Inside the Penguins on YouTube
- Follow Inside the Penguins on Twitter: @InsidePenguins