Why the Pens endure

They play through adversity and serve their city

After winning the previous two years, the Pittsburgh Penguins have been denied three in a row. They were felled in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, falling to their nemesis, the Washington Capitals.

It’s sad, but not tragic. No one can win year — it’s not an entitlement.

And what other hockey team has amassed such a consistently winning record over the years?

The Pens are to hockey what the New York Yankees once were to baseball — the team to beat, year after year.

Defeat is an unfamiliar experience for the Penguins, and the circumstances of this particular loss will prove difficult to swallow for many.

But, with two consecutive Stanley Cups and three over the last nine years, the Penguins and their fans can finally take a moment to reflect and appreciate the staggering accomplishments of this team.

For starters, since the NHL introduced a salary cap in the 2005-06 season, no team had won two consecutive Cups until the Penguins did so in 2016 and 2017, and only the Chicago Blackhawks have equaled the Pens’ three total championships in that period.

The Penguins have also won more total playoff games than any other team in the salary cap era, with a staggering 97 victories.

The Penguins have achieved much of this success in the face of adversity. In 2014, defenseman Kris Letang suffered a stroke at the age of 26. Later that same year, defenseman Olli Maatta, just 20 years old at the time, was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Shortly thereafter, forward Pascal Dupuis was forced to retire due to a blood clot. Mr. Letang and Mr. Maatta, fortunately, recovered and returned to the ice.

Hockey is a grueling game. Players persevere through horrific injuries. But the Penguins were faced with ailments that transcend the game of hockey. That so many young players were faced with potentially life-altering and career-ending diseases was shocking. The Pens came through.

And then the team recovered and won two consecutive Stanley Cups.

What’s more, the Penguins have succeeded with a likable group of players who do extensive work in the community. The team has raised millions of dollars for charity and the Penguins players are frequent visitors to children’s hospitals. Just last week, team captain Sidney Crosby hand-delivered a brand new set of hockey gear to a local 7year-old who lost his equipment in a house fire.

This team is an extension of the Pittsburgh family.

Look no further than the Penguins’ touching tribute to former goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who was taken by the Vegas Golden Knights in last summer’s NHL expansion draft. The Penguins, much like their home city, remember and take care of those who have made a difference to them.

It is painful to recall that the Penguins were considering a move away from Pittsburgh little more than a decade ago. Since that time, owners Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle, as well as Mr. Crosby, have restored the team’s reputation as one of the best in the NHL and as a Pittsburgh institution.

None of this means it would not have been better to win the Stanley Cup this year. It is always better to win.

But, in a league that now emphasizes parity, the Penguins have done what many thought impossible over and over again, and that is the sign of a team with a big heart and deeply ingrained professional ethic — a team for the ages.