Penguins count down top five goals of 2023-24

Tristan Jarry’s historic empty-netter ranks No. 1 as the Penguins rank the team’s five best goals of the season.

With postseason interviews winding down, the Penguins are bidding a final farewell to the 2023-24 campaign by ranking Pittsburgh’s top five goals of the season.

Here’s a rundown of the five best Penguins goals of 2023-24, according to the team, as well as full clips of each tally.

No. 5: Bryan Rust scores two overtime goals against the Los Angeles Kings (Nov. 9)

With just over a minute and a half remaining in overtime against the Los Angeles Kings, Rust’s celebration of his game-ending wraparound goal was cut short when officials rules the Penguins had been offsides heading into the play.

Rust returned to the ice and scored again on another wraparound just 19 seconds later. This time the goal stood as the Pens won 4-3 in OT in Los Angeles.

No. 4: Sidney Crosby’s no-look pass to Kris Letang during rout of San Jose Sharks (Nov. 4)

Sidney Crosby knew Kris Letang was behind him on an odd-man rush against the San Jose Sharks.

Crosby, who was playing in Game No. 1,200, took advantage with a between-the-legs drop pass onto the defender’s stick. Letang went to his backhand to tuck the puck past a Mackenzie Blackwood during a 10-2 blowout of San Jose.

No. 3: Erik Karlsson’s OT blast keeps Penguins’ playoff hopes alive against Red Wings (April 11)

The Penguins had to win— and keep the Red Wings from securing two points— in order to keep their wild card hopes alive.

After getting burned on the pair of late Detroit goals that sent the contest to overtime, Erik Karlsson was looking for redemption. He found it with a one-time blast in the extra period, and the Penguins won 6-5 in OT at home.

No. 2: Sidney Crosby scores from the goal line against the Colorado Avalanche (March 24)

Crosby joined Drew O’Connor on an odd-man rush rush before going down on one knee to take a shot on Alexandar Georgiev.

Georgiev turned it aside, but Crosby swatted at the rebound to keep it out of Avalanche control. Valtteri Puustinen then sent the puck back to the goal line, where Crosby was ready to tip it in the net and give the Penguins a three-goal lead. The Penguins lost this one in overtime in Denver, 5-4.

No. 1: Tristan Jarry scores first goalie goal in Penguins history (Nov. 30)

After successfully erasing a two-goal deficit to the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Penguins knew they need an empty-net goal to seal the comeback. They didn’t expect that goal to come from Tristan Jarry.

Jarry flung the puck down the ice and all the way into the Lightning net to secure a 4-2 victory in Florida.

He is the first Penguins’ goaltender to ever score a goal, and just the ninth in NHL history to successfully shoot a puck into the net, according to NHL.com’s Pete Jensen.

Other stats from the NHL and Jensen: Jarry’s goal travelled 175 feet and clocked in at 55.76 miles per hour. Not bad for a netminder.

Two observations

• It doesn’t seem like a great sign that one of the highlights the official Penguins account picked out came from a game where Pittsburgh blew a lead in historic fashion (the overtime loss to the Avs marked just the third time in franchise history the Penguins lost after holding a four-goal lead.)
• Watching highlights of early-season Kris Letang make it clear how much he was laboring during the final stretch of the Penguins season.

Any highlight-worthy goals you feel like were left out of the Penguins’ countdown?