In the wake of a lopsided loss, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ captain talked about the issues that led to it and what had to improve to stop the team’s slide down the standings.

Pittsburgh star Sidney Crosby scored his 58th and 59th career goals against the Flyers, and his continued excellence in the cross-state rivalry helped lead the Penguins to a 5-1 win.

Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby shared his perspective on Sharks rookie Macklin Celebrini, weighing in on the NHL buzz around the young star.

Sidney Crosby scored twice, tying Dave Andreychuk on the NHL all-time list in the Penguins' 4-3 OT win vs. the Blue Jackets.

The Pittsburgh Penguins' game itself showed many of the issues Sidney Crosby mentioned. Arturs Silovs allowed four goals on ten shots before being pulled in the second period. Tristan Jarry came in and made ten saves, but the Penguins were already in trouble.

Pittsburgh Penguins (13-7-5, in the Metropolitan Division) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (16-8-2, in the Atlantic Division) Tampa, Florida; Thursday, 7 p.m. EST BOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Penguins visit the Tampa Bay Lightning after Sidney Crosby scored two goals in the Penguins' 5-1 win against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Here's what's driving the growing optimism that the Penguins might be good enough to reach the Stanley Cup playoffs.

With 1,714 career points, Crosby is within range of becoming only the fifth player in NHL history to reach 1,800 points, a milestone he could reach next season. A more immediately achievable one is becoming the eighth player in history to record 1,100 assists. He’s currently sitting at 1,074 and could reach 1,100 in January.