Sidney Crosby, right, shares a laugh on the bench with Pascal Dupuis during Tuesday's game with Atlanta. The Penguins' captain netted two goals to help his team to a 6-3 victory.

PITTSBURGH — Sidney Crosby might be creating an intriguing subplot for the Winter Classic: He’s riding one of the NHL’s longest scoring streaks in the last 20 seasons.

Crosby scored twice during a four-point night to extend his scoring streak to 25 games, and the Pittsburgh Penguins won their final home game before the New Years Day’s outdoor game by beating the Atlanta Thrashers 6-3 on Tuesday.

Crosby twice answered Thrashers goals by scoring in the first period, then set up Chris Kunitz’s goal 9 seconds into the third period and another by Matt Cooke. Craig Adams also scored short-handed for Pittsburgh, which has won 16 of 19.

Crosby will try to extend his streak against the New York Islanders tonight, Pittsburgh’s final game before the Classic. The only longer streak over the last two decades was Mats Sundin’s 30-game run for Quebec in 1992-93.

“It’s nice when you’re going well and the puck’s going in,” Crosby said. “You just try to focus on your play, even when they’re coming. But I don’t think you think too much about that (streak).”

The Penguins captain, peaking just as the NHL’s midseason outdoor game against Washington approaches on Saturday, continues to torment the Thrashers.

Atlanta has lost its last nine in Pittsburgh, and no wonder. Crosby has six goals and four assists in three games against Atlanta this season, including his first natural hat trick during a 3-2 victory in Pittsburgh Dec. 2.

Crosby, the NHL scoring leader with 65 points to Steven Stamkos’ 52 for Tampa Bay, has 32 goals and 33 assists. During the streak, he has 26 goals and 23 assists, and he has at least one goal in five consecutive games.

Wayne Gretzky (1990-91), Bryan Trottier (1981-82), Brett Hull (1991-92) and Bernie Nicholls (1984-85) also had 25 game streaks. The NHL record is Gretzky’s 51-game run in 1983-84, during a more wide-open era in which he averaged three points per game during his streak. Mario Lemieux set the Penguins record with a 46-game streak in 1989-90.

“He’s a special player; it doesn’t take much for him to get on the board,” Atlanta forward Andrew Ladd said of Crosby. “It seems he gets a little bit of space and then, bang, it’s in the back of your net.”

Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 31 of 34 shots despite allowing Evander Kane’s 12th of the season only 46 seconds into the game.