50 free Pittsburgh Penguins trivia questions with answers — sports quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
The Pittsburgh Penguins were named by a fan contest because they would play in the Igloo, went bankrupt twice, tanked a season to draft Mario Lemieux and were saved from folding by Lemieux himself, who then became the only man with his name on the Stanley Cup as both player and owner. This Penguins trivia quiz covers all of it: Michel Briere, the switch from blue to black and gold over Boston's objections, Jaromir Jagr, Bob Johnson and Scotty Bowman, back-to-back Cups in 1991 and 1992, the 17-game win streak, the Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes, Evgeni Malkin's six-game debut, Max Talbot's Game 7, and the 2016 and 2017 titles. Questions range from easy ones any fan should get to hard ones about the 1975 bankruptcy, the first White House visit by an NHL team, the Century Line, the 'Blue Jerseys of Doom' and Lemieux scoring five ways in one game. There are questions on the arenas, the uniforms, the mascot and the rivalries too. Every answer was checked against encyclopaedic and reference sources before publishing, and each question carries a citation. For more, try our NHL trivia and hockey trivia pages.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01In which expansion year did the Penguins join the NHL?
1967
They were one of six teams that doubled the league from the Original Six.
Q 02The winning 'Penguins' entry in the naming contest was inspired by what?
The Civic Arena's nickname, the Igloo
Only 700 of 26,000 entries chose the name; Mark Peters had the winning entry.
Q 03Which Steelers owner helped lobby the Norris brothers for votes to bring the NHL to Pittsburgh?
Art Rooney
State senator Jack McGregor's group also included H.J. Heinz III and Richard Mellon Scaife.
Q 04The three-sided shape behind the penguin in the original logo symbolised what?
Downtown Pittsburgh's Golden Triangle
The first-season penguin also wore a scarf, dropped in the redesign a year later.
Q 05Which rookie led the Penguins to their first playoffs in 1970, then died after a car crash?
Michel Briere
His No. 21 was never reissued and was formally retired in 2001.
Q 06Which shopping-mall magnate bought the Penguins after their 1975 bankruptcy?
Edward J. DeBartolo Sr.
The team's office doors had been padlocked by creditors that year.
Q 07Which team protested when the Penguins switched to black and gold in 1980?
Boston Bruins
Pittsburgh cited the 1920s NHL Pirates and the city flag; the NHL sided with the Penguins.
Q 08Which trio formed the Penguins' 'Century Line' of the mid-1970s?
Syl Apps, Lowell MacDonald and Jean Pronovost
Their 1975 run ended when the Islanders rallied from 3-0 down in the series.
Q 09Which coach later admitted the Penguins consciously finished last in 1983-84 to secure the first pick?
Lou Angotti
Devils management protested; the club posted three six-game winless streaks in its last 21 games.
Q 10What did Lemieux do on his very first NHL shift in October 1984?
Scored on his opening shot
It came against Boston in October 1984; the Penguins still missed the playoffs four more years.
Q 11Lemieux's junior record of 282 points in 1983-84 came with which QMJHL club?
Laval Voisins
He finished junior with 562 points in just 200 games.
Q 12On Dec. 31, 1988, Lemieux became the only player to score in how many game situations in one game?
Five
Even strength, shorthanded, penalty shot, power play and empty net.
Q 13Which superstar defenseman did Pittsburgh acquire from Edmonton after the Oilers' 1987 Cup?
Paul Coffey
Tom Barrasso arrived from Buffalo to finally give Lemieux a top goalie.
Jaromir Jagr, drafted fifth in 1990, was the first player from which country drafted without defecting?
Q 21How was Lemieux able to enter the Hall of Fame in 1997, immediately after his first retirement?
The three-year waiting period was waived
He cited health and his disapproval of how the game was officiated.
Q 22Lemieux bought the bankrupt Penguins in 1999 by converting what into equity?
Deferred salary he was owed
The club owed him $32.5 million, making him its largest individual creditor.
Q 23Which supermarket tycoon helped Lemieux take control of the team in 1999?
Ronald Burkle
Czechoslovakia
His No. 68 was retired in 2024, only the third number so honoured by the club.
Q 15Whom did the Penguins beat for their first Stanley Cup in 1991, closing with an 8-0 win?
Minnesota North Stars
The margin was the largest in a Cup-deciding game in more than 80 years.
Q 16After the 1991 Cup the Penguins became the first NHL team to do what?
Visit the White House
President George H. W. Bush received them.
Q 17Who took over as coach for the 1992 repeat after Bob Johnson died of cancer?
Scotty Bowman
Pittsburgh swept Chicago in that year's Final.
Q 18Lemieux was diagnosed with which illness in January 1993, yet still won the scoring title?
Hodgkin lymphoma
He flew straight from his last radiation treatment to play in Philadelphia and got a standing ovation.
Q 19How many consecutive games did the 1992-93 Penguins win, an NHL record at the time?
17
They also won the Presidents' Trophy with a franchise-best 56-21-7 record.
Q 20Which team eliminated the record-setting Penguins in seven games in the 1993 playoffs?
New York Islanders
David Volek's overtime goal in Game 7 ended the run at a third straight Cup.
Lemieux assumed control on September 3, 1999, saving the franchise for the second time.
Q 24When Lemieux returned to the ice in December 2000, he became the NHL's first what?
Player-owner
He had been away 44 months and still carried the club to the 2001 conference finals.
Q 25Which team acquired Jaromir Jagr from Pittsburgh in the summer of 2001?
Washington Capitals
It was the biggest of the salary-shedding moves after attendance dwindled.
Q 26Whom did the Penguins select first overall in the 2003 draft?
Marc-Andre Fleury
A year later they took Evgeni Malkin second behind Alexander Ovechkin.
Q 27Where was Lemieux exploring a possible relocation before the 2007 arena deal?
Kansas City
He later said moving was never a real possibility, just a negotiating tactic.
Q 28The closed-door 2005 draft lottery that gave Pittsburgh the first pick was nicknamed what?
The Sidney Crosby Sweepstakes
It was held behind closed doors in a 'secure location' after the cancelled season.
Q 29Evgeni Malkin set a modern NHL record in October 2006 by scoring in each of his first how many games?
Six
His debut had been delayed by a rights dispute with the Russian Superleague; he won the Calder that season.
Q 30Which team beat the Penguins in the 2008 Stanley Cup Final before losing the 2009 rematch?
Detroit Red Wings
Crosby tied Conn Smythe winner Henrik Zetterberg for the 2008 playoff scoring lead.