2017–18 Pittsburgh Penguins season 2017–18 Pittsburgh Penguins season The 2017–18 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the 51st season for the National Hockey League ice hockey team that was established on June 5, 1967. They entered the season as two-time defending Stanley Cup champions. It was the first season since the 2002–03 season in which the team played without goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who was drafted to the Vegas Golden Knights in the expansion draft. The Penguins failed to defend their title, after being eliminated in the Second Round of the playoffs by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals, ending their chances of a possible three-peat,
2007–08 Pittsburgh Penguins season on their way to the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals, the franchise's first in 16 years. The team was defeated in the Stanley Cup Final by the Detroit Red Wings in six games. The Penguins' offseason activities began in May 2007, with the team naming Sidney Crosby its captain. At just 19 years old, Crosby became the youngest captain in NHL history. Crosby was named the first Penguins captain since the retirement of Mario Lemieux in January 2006; Crosby, Mark Recchi, Sergei Gonchar and John LeClair served as alternate captains after Lemieux's retirement. Veteran Gary Roberts was named as an alternate