Representing Canada, Letang won a gold medal at the 2006 and 2007 IIHF World Junior Championship after winning a silver medal at the 2005 IIHF World Under-18 Championship.

Letang was selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the third round (No. 62) of the 2005 NHL Draft out of Val-d'Or in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. In 2007, he won three awards in the QMJHL: the Emile Bouchard Trophy as the top defenseman, the Kevin Lowe Trophy as the best defensive defenseman and the Paul Dumont Trophy as the best personality.

Letang was selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the third round (No. 62) of the 2005 NHL Draft out of Val-d'Or in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. In 2007, he won three awards in the QMJHL: the Emile Bouchard Trophy as the top defenseman, the Kevin Lowe Trophy as the best defensive defenseman and the Paul Dumont Trophy as the best personality.

Representing Canada, Letang won a gold medal at the 2006 and 2007 IIHF World Junior Championship after winning a silver medal at the 2005 IIHF World Under-18 Championship.

Letang made his NHL debut Oct. 5, 2006, against the Philadelphia Flyers, and scored his first NHL goal seven days later, against the New York Rangers.

As a rookie in 2007-08, he had six goals and 17 points in 63 games and averaged 17:07 of ice time in 16 Stanley Cup Playoff games to help the Penguins reach the Cup Final.

In his second full season, Letang averaged 21:09 per game and scored 33 points (10 goals, 23 assists) in 74 games. He scored 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 23 playoff games to help the Penguins win the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1992.

Injuries limited Letang to 86 games from 2011-13, and in 2013-14 he missed 10 weeks after having a minor stroke Jan. 29 that limited him to 37 games.

Letang had his best offensive season in 2015-16. He scored 67 points (16 goals, 51 assists) in 71 games, averaged a team-high 26:57 of ice time per game and was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team for the second time. His ice time increased to 28:53 in the playoffs, when he scored 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) in 23 games to help Pittsburgh win another Stanley Cup.

Letang's 2016-17 season ended Feb. 21, the result of a herniated disc in his neck. He had 34 points (five goals, 29 assists) in 41 games but sat out the playoffs when the Penguins won a second straight Stanley Cup. But Letang rebounded with 51 and 56 points, respectively, in the next two seasons, and on Oct. 13, 2019 he became the first defenseman in Penguins history to score 500 points.

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