Kunitz makes big impact again
get away from it, from what you do well, it’s probably time to get away from [the game]. It’s probably not the best thing for the kids to see when you are at home and you have to explain why you have to go to the penalty box. But you just feel the emotion and ride with it.”
You always hear hockey players say how nice it is when a teammate gets rewarded for his hard work, for his willingness to take a hit or block a shot or stand up for one of his guys.
Kunitz’s coaches and teammates are thrilled he was rewarded against the Lightning.
“He just kept going at them,” assistant coach Rick Tocchet said. “Tampa had no answer for him. He kept getting in on the forecheck. He was hitting. I think he wore down a lot of their defense with his hits. He’s a small guy, but he hits like a truck.”
Kunitz has helped to bring out the best in linemates Rust and Malkin. The three combined for seven goals and nine assists in the final five games against Tampa Bay.
“It was our turn to pull through a little more,” Kunitz said.
Rust brings speed. Malkin is one of the game’s best playmakers. Kunitz is the grinder, but don’t underestimate his role.
“We do those space plays where Kunnie chips the puck to a space and you’ve got Rust or Geno skating to it,” Tocchet said. “That’s a deadly weapon. We have the same thing with [Nick] Bonino on the [Carl Hagelin-Phil Kessel] line. The puck gets to an area and the wingers chase it. That’s a big part of our offense.”
That’s what happened on Rust’s first goal. Kunitz called it “an area play.” He had the puck near the left boards at the blue line and saw Rust streaking from center ice toward the slot. Kunitz knew he was going to take a hit but still delivered that perfect pass. Rust blew in on goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy and buried the shot for a 1-0 lead. Rust’s winning goal came later in the second period when he jammed a loose puck by Vasilevskiy from in close.
“The way he shot that first puck, he’s probably been dreaming of that for quite some time,” Kunitz said. “But we don’t need him to be finished yet. We need him to score a few more big ones.”
It wouldn’t hurt if Kunitz keeps producing points as well as hits. He didn’t have a point in the five-game series win against the New York Rangers in the first round but had a goal and three assists in the six-game win against the Washington Capitals in the second round and that five-game streak against the Lightning.
Kunitz also started slowly in the regular season. He finished with a plus29, which ranked fourth in the NHL. But he had just five goals and eight assists in his first 42 games. Just when many people thought Kunitz was finished, he produced 12 goals and 15 assists in his final 38 games.
“Confidence is a huge thing,” Kunitz said. “It’s something that when it goes away, you fight the puck and you wonder what happened. I always tried to base my career on going back to the basics. Trying to get in on the forecheck. Get around the net and good things are going to happen.”
Going back to the Cup final is one of those good things.
Kunitz admitted he often wondered if he and the Penguins would make it back. There has been plenty of failure and disappointment since the team won the Cup in 2009. Kunitz is one of five players left from that championship club along with Crosby, Malkin, Kris Letang and Marc-Andre Fleury.
“It’s tough to get to,” Kunitz said. “We battled some good teams. The Rangers had our number in previous years. Then, to get through Washington, a team that dominated everybody all year. Then Tampa, which plays with an unbelievable pace and has guys who can score …It’s a great accomplishment.”
Kunitz, though tired and sore late Thursday night, already was looking ahead to the series against the Sharks, which starts Monday night at Consol Energy Center.
“I still enjoy the competing,” Kunitz said. “The competing is the best part of waking up as a professional athlete every single day.”
Clearly, it’s enough to keep an older man feeling mighty young.