2005–06 Pittsburgh Penguins season
The 2005–06 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the team's 39th season in the National Hockey League. The season was notable for being Sidney Crosby's rookie campaign. As of the 2018–19 season, this is the most recent season in which the Penguins missed the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Off-season
Pre-season
Regular season
The Penguins struggled defensively, finishing 30th overall in goals allowed, with 310.Sidney Crosby
was selected first overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft by the Penguins on July 30, 2005. Due to the labour stoppage in the previous season, the 2005 draft was conducted via a weighted lottery based on each team's playoff appearances and draft lottery victories in the last four years. This lottery system led to the draft being popularly referred to as the "Sidney Crosby Lottery" or the "Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes".On December 16, 2005, Michel Therrien named Crosby as an alternate captain for the Penguins. The move drew criticism from some hockey pundits, including Don Cherry, who claimed that Crosby had done nothing to earn the position.
Crosby finished his rookie season with the franchise record in assists and points for a rookie, both of which had been previously held by Mario Lemieux. Crosby is the youngest player in the history of the NHL to score 100 points in a single season, and only the seventh rookie ever to hit the benchmark. Overall, Crosby finished sixth in the NHL scoring race and seventh in the NHL in assists. Among Canadian NHL players, he trailed only Joe Thornton and Dany Heatley. While both Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals had impressive rookie campaigns, Crosby finished second behind Ovechkin for the Calder Memorial Trophy for NHL rookie of the year.
Through his first season, Crosby was accused by opposing players and coaches of taking dives and complaining to officials, which has been attributed to his youth.
During his rookie campaign, he was second on his team and fourth among all NHL rookies in penalty minutes, and is the only rookie to accumulate both 100 points and 100 penalty minutes in a single season in NHL history. This magnified his reputation for complaining to NHL officials.
Hockey analyst Kelly Hrudey compared Crosby to Gretzky, who had a similar reputation as a "whiner" in his youth, and suggested that as Crosby matured, he would mellow out and his reputation would fade.
Mario Lemieux
After the lockout concluded, Lemieux returned to the ice for the 2005–06 season. Hopes for the Penguins were high due to the salary cap and revenue sharing, which enabled the team to compete in the market for several star players. Another reason for optimism was the Penguins winning the lottery for the first draft pick, enabling them to select Sidney Crosby. Lemieux opened up his home to Crosby to help the rookie settle in Pittsburgh and Lemieux also served as Crosby's mentor.On January 24, 2006, Lemieux announced his second and permanent retirement from professional hockey at age 40. This followed a half-season in which he struggled not only with the increased speed of the "new NHL" but also with yet another threatening physical ailment, a heart condition called atrial fibrillation that caused him to experience irregular heartbeats.
Although he had put up points at a pace that most NHL forwards would be perfectly content with in his last season, Lemieux still remarked, "I can no longer play at a level I was accustomed to in the past."
Season standings
Schedule and results
Playoffs
The Penguins did not qualify for the playoffs.Player statistics
;Skaters;Goaltenders
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
Awards and records
- October 2005 – Sidney Crosby, NHL Rookie of the Month.
- Sidney Crosby, NHL All-Rookie Team.
Milestones
- Sidney Crosby played his first professional NHL game on October 5, 2005, against the New Jersey Devils, and registered an assist on the team's first goal of the season, scored by Mark Recchi in a 5–1 loss.
- November 11, 2005 – Sidney Crosby beat Jose Theodore of the Montreal Canadiens to win his first career shootout.
- November 11, 2005- Mario Lemieux scores his seventh goal of the season, and the last of his career.
- November 22, 2005 – Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin face each other for the first time.
- March 12, 2006 – Marc-Andre Fleury gets a shutout by stopping 22 shots against the Philadelphia Flyers.
- March 29, 2006 – John LeClair scores the 400th goal of his career.
- January 24, 2006 – Mario Lemieux announces his retirement.
- April 13, 2006 – Sidney Crosby scores four points in one game, including his 90th point of the season.
- April 17, 2006 – Sidney Crosby becomes the youngest player to score 100 points in one season.
Transactions
Trades
| August 10, 2005 | To Chicago Blackhawks ---- 2006 4th round pick | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Jocelyn Thibault |
| September 9, 2005 | To Nashville Predators ---- Kris Beech | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- conditional draft pick |
| December 9, 2005 | To St. Louis Blues ---- Steve Poapst | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Eric Boguniecki |
| January 18, 2006 | To Florida Panthers ---- 2006 6th round pick | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Eric Cairns |
| January 26, 2006 | To Edmonton Oilers ---- Dick Tarnstrom | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Cory Cross Jani Rita |
| March 9, 2006 | To Florida Panthers ---- Ric Jackman | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Petr Taticek |
| March 9, 2006 | To Carolina Hurricanes ---- Mark Recchi | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- Krystofer Kolanos Niklas Nordgren 2007 2nd round pick |
| March 9, 2006 | To Detroit Red Wings ---- Cory Cross | To Pittsburgh Penguins ---- 2007 4th round pick |
Free agents acquired
Free agents lost
Claimed via waivers
Lost via waivers
Player signings
| Player | Date | Contract terms |
| Noah Welch | August 3, 2005 | 3-year entry level contract |
| Ryan Lannon | August 3, 2005 | 3-year entry level contract |
| Rob Scuderi | August 9, 2005 | |
| Dany Sabourin | August 10, 2005 | |
| Jocelyn Thibault | August 10, 2005 | Multi-year contract |
| Kris Beech | August 10, 2005 | 1-year qualifying offer |
| Shane Endicott | August 11, 2005 | Multi-year contract |
| Colby Armstrong | August 12, 2005 | |
| Guillaume Lefebvre | August 15, 2005 | Qualifying offer |
| John LeClair | August 15, 2005 | 2-year contract |
| Josef Melichar | August 15, 2005 | 2-year contract |
| Matt Hussey | August 15, 2005 | Qualifying offer |
| Matt Murley | August 15, 2005 | |
| Konstantin Koltsov | August 16, 2005 | |
| David Koci | August 17, 2005 | |
| Michel Ouellet | August 18, 2005 | Multi-year contract |
| Dick Tarnstrom | August 29, 2005 | 1-year/$1.6M contract |
| Sidney Crosby | September 8, 2005 | 3-year/$850K contract |
| Mario Lemieux | September 9, 2005 | 1-year/$3M contract |
| Brooks Orpik | September 13, 2005 | 1-year contract |
| Tyler Kennedy | May 19, 2006 | Multi-year contract |
| Micki DuPont | June 16, 2006 | |
| Evgeni Malkin | June 20, 2006 | 3-year entry level contract |
Other
| Player | Date | Details |
| Kevin Stevens | September 2, 2005 | Hired as scout |
| Eddie Olczyk | December 15, 2005 | Fired as head coach |
| John Welday | December 15, 2005 | Fired as strength & conditioning coach |
| Randy Hillier | December 15, 2005 | Fired as assistant coach |
| Shane Clifford | December 15, 2005 | Fired as goaltending coach |
| Joe Mullen | December 15, 2005 | Fired as assistant coach |
| Michel Therrien | December 15, 2005 | Hired as head coach |
| Stephane Dube | December 15, 2005 | Hired as strength and conditioning coach |
| Mike Yeo | December 15, 2005 | Hired as assistant coach |
| Gilles LeFebvre | December 15, 2005 | Hired as goaltending coach |
| Zigmund Palffy | January 18, 2006 | Retired |
| Mario Lemieux | January 24, 2006 | Retired |
| Craig Patrick | April 20, 2006 | Fired as GM |
| Ray Shero | May 25, 2006 | Hired as GM, 5-year contract |