PITTSBURGH — Sidney Crosby broke Mario Lemieux‘s franchise scoring record with a goal and an assist in the first period of the Pittsburgh Penguins‘ game against the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday night.

Crosby, who began the night one point behind Lemieux, now has 645 goals and 1,079 assists for 1,724 points in 1,387 games. It also moved him past Lemieux for the eighth-most points in NHL history.

Crosby tipped Erik Karlsson‘s point shot at 7:58 of the first period for a goal to tie the record. He then broke the mark with 7:20 left in the period when his shot on a power play hit Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell tapped the rebound behind Jakub Dobes.

Crosby, Rust and Rakell embraced behind the net after the goal and the Penguins spilled over the bench to congratulate their captain. Later in the period, a video message recorded by Lemieux congratulating Crosby on the accomplishment was played.

“I knew when we played together in 2005, that you were going to be a very special player, and accomplish a lot of great things in your career,” Lemieux said in a message posted on the club’s social media accounts. “Here we are, 20 years later, you are now one of the best to ever play the game.”

From one 🐐 to another. pic.twitter.com/M3drq86PqV

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 22, 2025

Lemieux, a Hall of Famer who also owned the franchise following his second retirement, became the Penguins’ all-time points leader, surpassing then-assistant coach Rick Kehoe on January 20, 1989, when Crosby was 17 months old. Lemieux, who was in the lineup when Crosby recorded his first NHL point, finished his career with 1,723 points in 915 games.

Crosby, the No. 1 pick in 2005, is the seventh outright all-time points leader in 58 years of the franchise’s history and the ninth active player to lead a franchise in points. Crosby previously broke Lemieux’s record for most assists in franchise history this past Dec. 29 against the New York Islanders. Crosby is 45 goals behind Lemieux’s franchise record of 690.

Crosby is now third on the NHL’s all-time points list with a single franchise, behind only Steve Yzerman (1,755) and Gordie Howe (1,809), both with Detroit.

Crosby also passed Phil Esposito (449) for sole possession of the ninth-most even-strength goals in NHL history. He also tied Adam Oates for the eighth-most assists in NHL history in the first period. Crosby, who has 20 goals this season, achieved his 18th 20-goal season. Only six players in NHL history have more.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Newly hired Buffalo Sabres general manager Jarmo Kekalainen has wasted little time reshaping the team’s front office by hiring former Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin and Josh Flynn to his staff.

The hirings, announced Sunday, come in Kekalainen’s first week on the job and a day after he fired assistant general manager Jason Karmanos. Kekalainen took over on Monday to replace Kevyn Adams, who was fired with the Sabres already in jeopardy of extending their NHL-record playoff drought to a 15th consecutive season.

“[They] bring a wealth of unique experience and perspective,” said Kekalainen, the former Columbus Blue Jackets general manager who spent the previous six-plus months as a senior adviser in Buffalo. “Adding both to an already strong group adds versatility and helps us continue to build a well-rounded hockey operations staff.”

Bergevin fills the associate general manager position and will serve as Kekalainen’s top adviser. He joins the Sabres after spending parts of the past five seasons as a senior adviser with the Los Angeles Kings.

The 60-year-old Bergevin most notably oversaw the Canadiens from 2012 to 2021, over which Montreal made six playoff appearances, including a five-game series loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2021 Stanley Cup Final. He previously worked in player personnel and scouting roles with the Chicago Blackhawks.

“Marc has firsthand experience as an NHL general manager and a track record as a strong talent evaluator,” Kekalainen said. “His insight will be invaluable as we continue to identify and develop talent throughout the organization.”

Flynn was named assistant general manager. He previously worked under Kekalainen with the Blue Jackets specializing in salary cap management, statistical research and strategic planning. Flynn’s role will be similar in Buffalo.

“I know that his attention to detail and nuanced understanding of league processes will help to enhance how we support our broader organization,” Kekalainen said.

Flynn’s responsibilities are similar to that of Buffalo’s current assistant GM Mark Jakubowski. With Karmanos’ departure, Jakubowski’s duties will likely shift more to overseeing the Sabres’ American Hockey League affiliate in Rochester, New York.

Kekalainen has also retained Sabres assistant general manager Jerry Forton, who serves as the team’s chief amateur scout.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — New York Rangers captain J.T. Miller will miss at least one game after getting injured Saturday and is not traveling with the team to Nashville.

Coach Mike Sullivan said Miller was still being evaluated back home for an upper-body injury and would not play Sunday night against the Predators.

Miller left the Rangers’ game against Philadelphia with about eight minutes left after taking a big hit from Flyers defenseman Nick Seeler and landing awkwardly. The 32-year-old forward appeared to be favoring his right arm or shoulder while in pain on the bench and skating off to go down the tunnel for medical attention.

“You don’t want to lose any teammates,” center Mika Zibanejad said. “When you see your captain go down and you don’t see him come back, that obviously becomes [a situation] for us to step up and everyone has to do a little more when a guy like that leaves. Just hoping everything is OK.”

Miller was named captain before training camp. He has 10 goals and 12 assists in 35 games this season and is believed to be in consideration for the U.S. Olympic team, though it’s unclear whether this injury could cloud that possibility.