Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin Rank As Best NHL Duo Since 2000

Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin continue to lead the Pittsburgh Penguins and have done so together since the 2006-07 season.

Crosby and Malkin have won three Stanley Cups together on the Penguins, each reaching historic numbers that included carving their name into the National Hockey League record books.

The Pittsburgh duo has remained a strong force together for almost 20 seasons, and they’re receiving credit for their accomplishments because of it. Bleacher Report’s Joe Yerdon wrote about the top duos in the NHL since 2000, ranking Crosby and Malkin at number one.

“When Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin became teammates in Pittsburgh in 2006-2007 after the latter arrived from Russia, most of us had a good feeling they would become a powerful duo for years to come,” Yerdon wrote. “What we didn’t realize then was that it would last for nearly two decades. Crosby has more than 1,600 points and Malkin has more than 1,300, which makes them one of the top duos of all time. That’s two elite players playing together for their entire career and wreaking havoc on everyone they’ve gone up against the entire time.

“They’ve made the Stanley Cup Final together four times, winning three of them with Crosby claiming the Conn Smythe twice and Malkin once, the same ratio in which they’ve also won league MVP as the Hart Trophy winners. Both have been the NHL’s leading scorer twice and the one award Malkin won that Crosby never will was the Calder as league rookie of the year (Crosby lost out to Alex Ovechkin in 2005-2006).”

With each player having won the Hart Trophy along with the three championships, it’s hard to argue against them being ranked anywhere but first. So far through the 2024-25 campaign, Malkin has an impressive 11 points while Crosby has six.

The duo will look to tackle the Calgary Flames on Tuesday night to try and get back into the win column.

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