The 2011–12 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the franchise’s 45th season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Penguins, lead by head coach Dan Bylsma, would start the season without captain center Sidney Crosby. The team still managed a 51-25-6 record, an East-best 29 home wins, and their 108 points second-best in the Eastern Conference. In February, the team began the league's longest season winning streak and also saw the return of Crosby after missing more than 40 games with concussion like symptoms, before they saw the streak end in March at 11 games. Center Evgeni Malkin was able to play in 75 games despite difficulties associated with recent knee surgery and recorded his greatest goal tally in a season (50) on the way to winning his second Art Ross Trophy. Marc-Andre Fleury tied a