Cullen hoping history repeats itself

Matt Cullen's life was changed with a phone call.
That phone call, which came from Pittsburgh general manager Jim Rutherford in the summer of 2016 inviting him to join the Penguins, resulted in two Stanley Cups and a situation better than Cullen could have ever dreamed of for himself and his family.

Now, Cullen is hoping that history repeats itself.
This summer, Cullen again received a phone call from Rutherford, asking him to return to Pittsburgh after a season spent with the Wild in his native Minnesota. That season didn't go as Cullen and his family had hoped, so when he received the offer from Rutherford, it didn't take long to say yes.
"It's a pretty cool opportunity at my age to come back and try to have another chance at making a run with this team," Cullen said.
Overall, the parallels that have helped get Cullen to this point are pretty striking.
Cullen played for Nashville in the 2014-15 season, and after they were eliminated by the Chicago Blackhawks in the First Round, he found a quiet spot in the visitors' locker room at Chicago's United Center to reflect on his career - thinking that was probably it.
Two years later, after the Penguins eliminated the Predators to capture their second straight Stanley Cup - this time, amidst all of the celebrating at Bridgestone Arena - Cullen again thought he was going to retire.
"Honestly, we all laugh about it, but I genuinely thought I was done then," Cullen said from the driveway of his home in Moorhead, Minnesota. "Then last season we were here, and I genuinely thought I was done."
But Cullen learned one important lesson during that two-year time period that had him re-evaluate where he stood, and ultimately decide on a second stint with Pittsburgh.
"The thing I learned the most from going to Pittsburgh the first time was that you have to take risks in your life," he said. "It would have been easy to say no and just have been done, but we kind of took the leap and went to Pittsburgh and were just blown away by it. It was such a good experience.
"So I guess it's kind of opened me up to more. Just given an opportunity and give it a try and hope for the best. Now, it's like going home."
Pittsburgh became such a special place for Cullen, his wife Bridget and their three boys. Brooks, 11, Wyatt, 9, and Joey, 8, became fixtures around the locker room, as they were home-schooled at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex both years.
While they'll be going to a regular school within walking distance of their house this season, the boys will still be around the dressing room a lot as they are taking part in the Excel Academy and playing for the Penguins Elite.
"As soon as we found out about it, oh man, they were freaking out," Cullen said. "They were really pushing. Every day, they'd pull me aside for heart to hearts. 'I don't know what you think, but we really think we should go back for one more year in Pittsburgh.' It was hilarious."
Those are conversations Cullen's teammates probably wish they could have had with him, but fortunately, it all ended up working out.
"(The signing) happened so fast I hadn't talked to many guys, because it literally had come up a few days before," Cullen said. "So I know a lot of guys were really surprised and were like, 'wow, thanks for the heads up (laughs).' And I was like 'listen, I just found out too.' It's pretty cool. We all got so close, it's a close group of guys."
One person who's especially thrilled to have Cullen back is Sidney Crosby, who was the first person to text him once the news became official.
"He was pretty excited," Cullen said. "It was cool. It was fun to hear from him and everybody else."
Cullen, who turns 42 on Nov. 2, will be the oldest player in the league - but anyone questioning his ability to keep up should spend a day with him and the boys.
Brooks, Wyatt and Joey didn't stop moving the entire time we were there on a Friday in late July. We were exhausted trying to keep up, but Cullen handled it all in stride without breaking a sweat.
The boys have pretty packed schedules, but Cullen does his skating and training in the morning so that he's able to get it in before they head off to hockey or baseball. His workouts have gotten shorter, but he goes five or six days a week instead of just four.
Cullen's approach to training at this point in his career is to keep his body feeling strong and powerful while maintaining his speed, but also to simply stay healthy so he doesn't enter the season with any bumps, bruises or muscle issues.
"When I was younger I used to do a lot of heavier lifting and was focused on getting more powerful. Now I do a lot more mobility and flexibility stuff," he said. "I still do a lot of power stuff, but I use less weights. I also do a lot of my movement and agility stuff on the ice now, because I feel like it's easier on my body than running and jumping."
Cullen usually does his skating and training at a rink right in Moorhead, the town in which he and Bridget grew up, but it's in the process of being remodeled so he's been doing them separately. He does have workout spaces set up at both his home and his cottage at the lake that are lined with various exercise equipment, including a plyo box, kettlebells, medicine balls and a few different machines.
While training is obviously important, Cullen places just as much focus on his diet.
"Honestly, I think that's a huge reason I'm able to play right now, is because I've always been interested in it and I've studied it a lot," he said.
The summer before Cullen came to Pittsburgh, he made big changes in his diet - and he noticed big differences when it came to his energy levels and amount of soreness.
In the summer, his diet goes more to grass-fed meats, fish and no grains, which means a lot of veggies and salads - which is a struggle for him. But as he switches to in-season mode, Cullen is able to eat a lot more carbs like rice to keep his energy up.
"I stay gluten-free and dairy-free throughout the season just to help reduce inflammation and stuff," he said. "When I'm all done playing, will I stay gluten- and dairy-free? Probably not (laughs). But I like doing it now, I feel good, I've noticed a big difference."
It's something his teammates have also noticed. Former Penguin Tom Kuhnhackl, who lovingly referred to Cullen as "Dad," once told a story about adopting one of the veteran's eating habits.
"On the road we have the same food - same salmon, chicken, pasta, all that kind of stuff," Kuhnhackl recounted. "I got so sick of it, I couldn't eat chicken anymore. So I watched Cully. He just grabs a piece of salmon, cuts it open, puts olive oil on it and then syrup. I was like, are you kidding me? That looks disgusting. That can't be good. Well, ever since that day, I've been eating it every road trip."
When told of that anecdote, Cullen had to laugh.
"That's like my vice, my one vice is maple syrup," he said. "I love it. Sometimes on the road salmon is hit or miss, so I need to have something that makes it taste good."
Cullen loves playing in Pittsburgh for a number of reasons, and one of them is how people in the organization are always looking for ways to get advantages.
"When you have a culture of guys that are looking for ways to improve and anything that might help, it's fun to be a part of it," Cullen said. "Because you learn and then you find something like 'man, this really helps me.' You get better together."
Physically, Cullen has done everything within his control to make sure he's ready for the upcoming season. And mentally, he's as motivated as he's ever been.
"I think after the season didn't go the way that I hoped, on a number of levels, I guess there's still a lot of competitiveness in me," he said. "I think there's a little bit of me that wants to prove that I can still play and be a difference-maker."