Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby’s recent NHL record—20 straight seasons averaging at least a point per game—has sparked widespread praise, with broadcaster Pat McAfee comparing him to NBA legend LeBron James.
Crosby surpassed Wayne Gretzky’s longstanding mark with his 80th point of the year, making it 20-of-20 seasons scoring at least as many points as games he played in them.
On Friday’s episode of the “Pat McAfee Show,” McAfee drew a direct parallel between Crosby and James, emphasizing the longevity, adaptability, and sustained excellence that both embody.
This man was hyped up to be the LeBron James of hockey, coming out of Canada,” McAfee said. “He gets drafted in Pittsburgh Penguins, No. 1 overall. He’s done absolutely nothing wrong. All he’s done is committed fully to hockey, fully for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
“Just shows up and balls. 20 seasons now, he’s averaged at least a point per game.
McAfee elaborated on their similar approaches, noting that both Crosby and current Los Angeles Lakers forward James evolved into elite facilitators, reshaping their roles to help their teams succeed.
LeBron was much more of a playmaker. Michael Jordan never was a facilitator,” McAfee noted. “Different styles of basketball, different styles of people, I think. And that’s why he played. But everybody wanted him to be like Michael Jordan, like, ‘We want you to not pass the ball. We want you to take the dog out.'”
“Sidney Crosby has always been a playmaker first, not worrying about scoring.
Despite Crosby’s historic accomplishment on Thursday, the Penguins have struggled significantly, losing 7–3 to Buffalo on the night Crosby tallied his 80th point of the season.
It’s hard right now, after a loss like that,” Crosby said after the game. “I’m thankful for a lot of the guys I’ve played with who contributed to it.
”It’s a special milestone, but I play to win.
With a 29–34–11 record and 69 points through 74 games, the Penguins are in serious danger of missing the playoffs for the third consecutive season, sitting six points outside of the final wild-card berth.
Pittsburgh only has eight games remaining on its regular-season schedule, between one and three fewer than each team sitting above the Penguins in the standings.
