Sean Gallagher

Back in October, as the 2025-26 NHL season was about to get underway, there seemed to be a consensus that the Pittsburgh Penguins were headed for a rebuild.

This after posting a losing record the year prior: their first since Sidney Crosby’s rookie season in 2005-06, parting ways with head coach Mike Sullivan and having a Draft that signaled a team looking years down the road.

Their Stanley Cup Playoffs chances, after missing the previous three, were placed at 9-percent.

Perhaps the first sign that a finish at the bottom of the league standings wasn’t imminent came on Opening Night, when the Penguins and new head coach Dan Muse shut out Sullivan and the Rangers 3-0 at Madison Square Garden.

But then December came, going winless in 8-straight, appearing to douse any hopes of a turnaround season before Christmas.

The final days of 2025 saw a team in free-fall level out, with a six-game winning streak to end January, ultimately sitting 2nd in the Metropolitan Division headed into the Olympic break.

Ahead of the NHL resuming play, the cynics all looked at the Penguins remaining schedule and in their own way said “it’s been a great story, but I think they fall short”. Also throw in Crosby being out with an injury from the Olympics, and Evgeni Malkin later going full “Paul Bunyan”, earning a five-game suspension.

Sure, not having those two in the lineup feels like a death sentence. But anyone who has watched this team for the last 20 years knows 87 and 71 require a good supporting cast, and credit to Kyle Dubas, he assembled a good one.

Bryan Rust, Anthony Mantha, Egor Chinakhov, Roland Rakell and rookie Ben Kindel are among that cast.

And then there’s Erik Karlsson.

Karlsson was seen as dead weight in the offseason and a trade was thought to be coming.

One of the big reasons the Penguins are playoff bound is Karlsson: coming up with goals in big moments down the stretch, playing like a man possessed (or someone sticking it to the hockey writers).

All of this helped the Penguins survive that stretch.

March 30th at the Islanders would determine how the last 8 games would go.

Down 3-1 early in the 2nd period, Pittsburgh scored 7-unanswered goals to win 8-3, which sent the Isles spiraling.

A win the next night at home against the Red Wings was followed by a mulligan at the Lightning, but the Penguins would then have their way with a tired and injury-riddled Panthers in back-to-back games at home over the weekend.

All of that set up a win-and-in scenario Thursday night at the Devils.

Coming out flat in the opening minutes, Bryan Rust scored on the team’s first shot on goal, and the Penguins later responded with two goals in 9 seconds after the Devils tied it in the 2nd period.

Up 3-2 in the 3rd period, Evgeni Malkin buried a rebound in the crease, giving the Penguins insurance and the many in black and gold in the Prudential Center crowd a chance to exhale, ultimately celebrating a 5-2 victory and a playoff berth for the first time since 2022.

This Penguins team is not perfect. Their blue line is questionable at times, they couldn’t win a shootout to save their lives until more recently and they won’t be favorites to lift the Cup in June.

But remember. They only had a 9-percent chance to make it to the playoffs.

As Lloyd Christmas once said…

“So you’re telling me there’s a chance?”