The Pittsburgh Penguins finished their 2024-25 campaign with a convincing 5-2 win over the Eastern Conference’s top team, the Washington Capitals, at PPG Paints Arena on Thursday night. 

Outside of Bryan Rust reaching 30 goals for the first time in his career, the night belonged to two future Hall of Famers, Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin, who kept their long-time rivalry alive with some classic goals and passes, moments fans will remember for a lifetime.

However, the Capitals still have plenty of hockey to play as they face the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Meanwhile, the Penguins will disband, with some youngsters headed back to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, while the veterans can prepare themselves for next season’s grind. 

Here’s one final regular season takeaway.

History in the Making

In case anyone missed it, here’s a quick rundown of the milestones players achieved in the season finale:

Rust scored two goals to reach 30 goals for the first time in his career. By doing so, he becomes the oldest Penguins draft pick to register their first 30-goal season. 

25 Fascinating Facts About The NHL In 2005-06, The Last Time The Penguins Had A Losing SeasonWin or lose on Thursday night, the Pittsburgh Penguins (33-35-12) will have their first losing season since the 2005-06 campaign, when the club was 22-46-14.

Crosby, thanks to a goal and an assist, became only the sixth player in NHL history to record a point in a season after turning 37. Moreover, with the game-winner, his 10th of the year, Crosby is now one of just five Pittsburgh players to reach double digits in this category, which includes Jaromir Jagr, Mario Lemieux, Petr Sykora, and Phil Kessel. 

Rickard Rakell, who had a third-period assist on Philip Tomasino’s goal, tied Tomas Sandström with 70 points to share the franchise record for most points scored by a Swedish player in a single season with the Penguins.

Matt Grzelcyk recorded his sixth multi-assist game of the season to finish the year with 40 points, a new career high, surpassing his previous best of 26.

Penguins Played With Passion

With nothing on the line except pride, the Penguins went out and gave their hometown fans something positive to think about heading into the off-season. Against the game’s greatest goal scorer and his rookie netminder, Pittsburgh kept the pedal to the metal and didn’t give either the time and space to be effective.

Penguins End Season On High Note, Defeat Caps, 5-2It's difficult to imagine a more fitting end to the 2024-25 season - and any season, really - than

Of course, Clay Stevenson made some outstanding saves, but the Penguins pressured him from all angles, scoring five times on him in his first NHL appearance. Meanwhile, Ovechkin did get on the scoresheet, but wasn’t given much to work with (two shots) despite the home team’s season-long issues on the back end. 

Even though the Penguins finished the year with a losing record, a handful of extra performances like Thursday night could have had them closer to a wildcard spot, if not a place in the divisional race. 

A Look Ahead

Of course, fans want to see Crosby make another run for a Stanley Cup ring, but that didn’t happen in 2024-25. However, reinforcements are on the way, and it’s been fun watching the kids work their magic over the past couple of weeks. 

Whether it was Rutger McGroarty finding a role in the top six and contributing, or Ville Koivunen putting up two points in the season finale, the days of not qualifying for the postseason are soon to be a thing of the past, as the organization prepares for life after Crosby retires in 2027. 

Unfortunately, not many fans have come to realize that the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins are one of the top teams in the AHL, and it shows by the strong play of McGroarty nd Koivunen. When these report to training camp in the fall, they will be more seasoned and have invaluable experience to grow upon, giving Penguins fans hope for a better 2025-26 campaign.