Five Questions with Chris Kontos

NHL.com's Q&A feature called "Five Questions With ..." runs every Tuesday. We talk to key figures in the game and ask them questions to gain insight into their lives, careers and the latest news.

The latest edition features former NHL forward Chris Kontos, who played eight NHL seasons with the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Los Angeles Kings and Tampa Bay Lightning. The forward had 123 points (54 goals, 69 assists) in 230 regular-season games but is perhaps best known for his performance during the 1988-89 Stanley Cup Playoffs with the Kings when he had nine goals in 11 games.

Chris Kontos chuckles when he is referred to as one of the most memorable unsung heroes in Stanley Cup Playoff history.

"That's what I'm most remembered for but there were other highlights in my career," he said. "You know, I scored 19 goals in the first 21 games with the Lightning in 1992-93, the first season Tampa Bay was in the League. I was right up there with Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky in scoring at the time. That was pretty cool."

Kontos scored four goals in the Lightning's first game, a 7-3 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks in Tampa's 11,000-seat Expo Hall at the Florida State Fairgrounds on October 7, 1992.

"It was great to be part of a historical moment like that and contribute," he said. "But people still remember the playoff run with the Kings and I understand that. The spotlight is always brighter in the postseason, and it should be."

Now living on the shores of Georgian Bay in Penetanguishene, 90 miles north of Toronto, Kontos addressed a number of topics in a wide-ranging interview with NHL.com including his magical run with the Kings, what it takes to be an unsung playoff hero, and who has impressed him in that role during the 2020 Stanley Cup Qualifiers and could in the upcoming playoffs.

Here are Five Questions with… Chris Kontos:

Your magical run of nine goals in 11 games in the 1988-89 Stanley Cup Playoffs almost never happened. Is it true you had to scramble to fax your contract at the last minute to the Kings so you were eligible?

"(Laughing) Ya, that's what happened. I'd been with the Kings the year before. After I'd been traded from Pittsburgh near the end of the 1987-88 season and they called me up, I had 12 points in my six games with the Kings. And I had a six-point game against Chicago and I said 'Man, that's it. I've finally made it.' But things didn't work out and I ended up going to play in Switzerland in 1988-89. When the season ended, we flew back home. My wife and I had just moved into our home in Penetang when we heard a bang at our door. It was my dad. He told us that (Kings GM) Rogie Vachon had called and said that I had to sign a contract before midnight. Remember we didn't have things like the internet back then. We scooted to a nearby lumber store which had a fax machine and got it in in time. I played a handful of games for Los Angeles and then it was off to the playoffs.

What it's like when a player gets on a roll like you did?

Credit goes to Robbie Ftorek, the coach there. He'd been my centerman when I first called up to the Rangers in 1982-83 and went to bat to get me signed for the run just in case. Wayne Gretzky had just gotten traded to the Los Angeles Kings and hockey was the thing to do in L.A. We had so many stars come through the room like Sylvester Stallone and Tom Hanks. It was phenomenal. And I got on a run there. It was special. You get on such a roll. Confidence plays such a big role too.

Do you still get remembered for that particular postseason run?

"Oh yes. Every couple of years it would come up on 'Hockey Night in Canada,' whether it be Ron MacLean and Don Cherry, whoever. It still does. And every time it comes up at playoff time, my phone blows up with people wanting to let me know that 'Hey, they just mentioned you.' My kids' friends will tell them, 'Hey, your dad was just mentioned.' Of course, they never saw it because they were so much younger. Whatever the case, it's special. I played 16 years of pro hockey. I played with a lot of other guys who played pro hockey for that long, if not longer. And I got remembered for something pretty cool. And hey, I'm ok with that. Even though I didn't have a Wayne Gretzky career, I got on a couple of rolls that to this day I still get calls like the one we're on right now. It's awesome."

Who should people keep their eyes on in terms of a player who impressed you in the Qualifiers and could fit that unsung-hero role in the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs?

"I really like Pierre-Luc Dubois of the Columbus Blue Jackets. I know he's not an under-the-radar type guy but how much was expected of him? I think I heard he only scored once in their last 17 regular-season games and how can anyone forget John Tortorella yelling at him on the bench against the Maple Leafs? He came off that battle with Torts and responded with a hat trick. These are the types of Cinderella stories that are pretty cool. He's kind of a little off the radar but you can see how skilled he is. He's big, lanky and can move around. You never know. His confidence could balloon like mine did and could start lighting it up like I did. He's not a [Sidney] Crosby, he's not in that category. Sometimes guys like that just figure it out and it kind of makes sense."

What are you doing these days? I know you are running off to the local arena.

"Ya I work with kids in the area here who are trying to get to the next level. We're only allowed 18 kids on the ice at a time and only recently got back because of the pandemic. So great to be back on the ice. I have a vehicle-liner company called Raptor Liner that people put on their cars, boats, floors. I just sold my print company last year after 20 years to a huge hockey fan. I also was a sportscaster at CKVR in Barrie, about 30 minutes from here, which I loved. Kevin Quinn, now one of the voices of the Edmonton Oilers, was the guy who tutored me. I did that, I think, from 1998-01. The only reason I left for TV was that Kristoff, my son, was playing hockey and I was missing all his backyard games and practices. I wasn't going to miss that. Kristoff, by the way, is leaving for Sweden this week to play hockey. He's 26. My daughter Joelle, 23, is an opera singer and was supposed to be in Italy right now performing but COVID-19 cancelled that. I'm so proud of them both."