Pittsburgh Penguins: A tribute to Chris Kunitz’s career
Former Pittsburgh Penguins forward Chris Kunitz has announced his retirement and will be joining the Chicago Blackhawks’ development staff.
Chris Kunitz was just born to be a winner. With four Stanley Cup rings between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Anaheim Ducks, and an Olympic gold medal, Kunitz hangs up the skates today with plenty of hardware over the course of a tremendous 15-year NHL career.
Kunitz spent the large majority of his Penguins tenure attached to Sidney Crosby’s left-wing. He was really the only winger of this era that complemented both Crosby and Evgeni Malkin’s style of play at a high level.
Crosby and Malkin each won an MVP and scoring title with Kunitz as their left-winger. His ability to create time and space for them, and feed them the puck with open ice, was a big reason why he was such a great fit alongside both of them.
Kunitz also had a positive impact on controlling territory throughout his career. Kunitz and Crosby mutually benefited from playing alongside one another for so long.
He had a knack for using his skill set and making big-time plays in big-time games. Penguins GM Jim Rutherford told The Athletic today that “you always knew he’d (Kunitz) show up and be great in the biggest games.” That is bang on.
The following video clips will show how vitally important he was to some of the most memorable moments in Penguins history. In Game 7 of the 2016 Eastern Conference Final, Kunitz found Bryan Rust in stride with a perfect pass (with open ice ahead) that led to a 1-0 Penguins lead.
One year later, Kunitz scored both goals in a Game 7 victory over the Ottawa Senators, as this game-winner was the biggest goal in the history of PPG Paints Arena.
That series against the Senators was frustrating at times for the Penguins. There was not much room on the ice for their star talent to showcase their talent. Similar to the whole city of Pittsburgh, Kunitz found Phil Kessel’s frustrations to be comical.
But Kunitz’s legacy does not stop there. He made a significant contribution in all three of the Penguins Stanley Cup-clinching victories over the last decade.
In Game 7 of the 2009 Stanley Cup Final, Kunitz chipped a puck out of the defensive zone and found Max Talbot. Kunitz’s pass led to a 2 on 1 odd-man rush for the Penguins, as shortly thereafter Talbot buried a wrist shot past Chris Osgood.
Without Kunitz’s pass, that scoring opportunity and goal would not have materialized, and who knows if the Penguins would have ended up winning that game.
In-Game 6 against the San Jose Sharks, Sharks winger Joel Ward appeared to be ahead of the pack and in home-free on a breakaway. Not on Kunitz’s watch.
One year later, Kunitz won the race to a loose puck, drew the attention of two Predators defenders, and found a wide-open Justin Schultz at the center point. You know what happens next. Kunitz tallied the secondary assist on Patric Hornqvist’s game-winning goal to clinch another Stanley Cup.
This was his final game as a member of the Penguins. I would say he ended his tenure here on quite the high note.
After going from Crosby’s preferred winger to a depth player in the latter stages of his Penguins tenure, Kunitz was the ultimate team-player. Based on what he told The Athletic, Rutherford thinks quite highly of Kunitz. “That guy never complained. He went about his business in the most professional of ways.”
I have all the time in the world for Kunitz. You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone with a bad word to say about him. He was a darn good player that played a crucial role in the Penguins success over the years. Thanks for reading!