Malkin scores his 500th goal, Crosby reaches 1,600 points for the Penguins

PITTSBURGH – Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby have shared many milestones and memories over the past two decades as icons of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Both celebrated milestones Wednesday night against the Buffalo Sabers, as Malkin became the 48th player in NHL history to score 500 career goals and Crosby became the 10th player in NHL history with 1,600 career regular season points.

Crosby's overtime goal capped a 6-5 win over Buffalo.

“I really wanted to score (the 500th goal) last year,” Malkin said. “I probably thought about it too much all summer. It’s been a long road to 500 and I’m happy to have finally done it.”

When Crosby scored his 500th NHL goal in 2022, Malkin provided the assist. Crosby returned the favor at 3:26 of the third period on Wednesday.

Crosby sent a between-the-legs pass behind the net to Malkin, who was sitting on the ice as he tossed the puck past Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. The bench emptied to congratulate Malkin and the crowd gave him a standing ovation.

“It was a pretty great goal,” Crosby said. “I sat in the front row and watched him. I will remember that fondly.”

Malkin, who has the third-most goals in Penguins history with 500 in 1,150 games, is the 20th player in NHL history to score 500 goals with one team. The Penguins selected the 38-year-old Malkin No. 2 overall in the 2004 draft, and he teamed with Crosby to bring three Stanley Cup championships to Pittsburgh.

“If you look at the championships the Penguins have won during their time here, their fingerprints are all over them,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “Winning Stanley Cups can build relationships.”

Malkin joined Crosby (592), Washington's Alex Ovechkin (853) and Nashville's Steven Stamkos (555) as the only active players with 500 goals. Stamkos did it with Tampa Bay. Malkin joins Ovechkin as the only Russian-born players in NHL history to reach this mark.

Pittsburgh is the second team in NHL history with three 500-goal goals, joining Montreal.

The Penguins superstars combined for a seven-point night against Buffalo. Crosby had a goal and two assists. Malkin has 11 points in five games with a goal and three assists and shows no signs of slowing down.

“I think (Malkin) had a really strong start to the season,” Sullivan said. “When he's at his best, the puck seems to follow him, and that's what he's doing right now.”

Crosby scored his 1,600th. Point in the regular season with second assist on Bryan Rust's power play goal at 11:01 of the first period. The 37-year-old Crosby is the first player to reach this milestone since Jaromir Jagr on October 6, 2011.

It took Crosby 1,277 games to reach 1,600 points, the fifth-fewest to reach the milestone. Crosby, in his 20th NHL season, is seven goals shy of reaching 600. He is 39 points shy of tying Hall of Famer Joe Sakic for ninth in NHL history.

Crosby, selected No. 1 overall by Pittsburgh in the 2005 NHL Draft, is 121 points behind Hall of Famer and Penguins legend Mario Lemieux for eighth place in league history. Lemieux's 1,723 points are also the franchise record.

For another night, Malkin and Crosby took center stage.

“We probably deserve to spend this night together,” Malkin said. “It’s a great story.”