From start to finish, it was an incredible night for the 42-year-old forward, who became just the second American-born player in NHL history after Chris Chelios (1,651) to reach that milestone.
"I didn't really have expectations going into it, but it was pretty overwhelming, honestly," Cullen said after the game. "It was way more than I would ever deserve or expect. It really took me off guard. It just means a lot that everybody would go through all that trouble for me. It was pretty special."
It started when Cullen walked into the locker room before the game and saw that every jersey at every stall bore his name and number, with all of his teammates set to wear them during warmups. It was quite the sight to see once the players took the ice.
"It was my best warmup of the year," Cullen joked. "That was pretty funny, though. A classy touch. I've never seen that. That was really cool."
Later, after the national anthem concluded, Cullen's wife Bridget and their three sons - Brooks, Wyatt and Joey - joined him on the ice, as did Penguins assistant GM Bill Guerin. At that point, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel skated over to greet them and the ceremony began.
It started with a tribute video, which included Chelios himself passing along his congratulations to Cullen. After that, the Penguins provided Cullen with a commemorative silver-plated hockey stick and a plaque celebrating his career.
Then, to top it all off, Cullen was presented with a new Polaris utility vehicle that the players collectively purchased for their beloved teammate. Penguins mascot Iceburgh, also wearing a No. 7 jersey, helped bring the car out onto the ice, where the Cullen boys hopped into the backseat when it was time to drive it off.
"They're probably still in, I don't know," Cullen laughed. "That was pretty cool. The guys went out of their way to do that, which was beyond anything I would ever imagine."
"It just says a lot about him as a player, the way he's worked, continues to get better, the kind of teammate he is," Crosby said. "I could go on and on, but it's great to see him achieve that and he's a great guy and deserves it."
Once the ceremony concluded, Cullen stayed on the ice as Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan put him in the starting lineup. And Crosby, who usually takes the opening faceoff, gave those honors to Cullen.
"It's a good number," said Crosby, who recorded his 1,200th NHL point with an assist in the first period. "When you talk about milestones tonight, to be a part of 1,500 games is pretty special. I'm not sure if I'll ever be apart of that again for a career. To get that win for Cully and see the support he got, it was a big one. It was a lot of fun to be a part of."
Cullen said that over this last stretch, after every game his kids would show him where he ranked in terms of most games played by an American-born player and who he had passed, and it had been a fun experience going through that with them.
Tonight, as he passed Mike Modano (1,499), Cullen wore a different game jersey each period so that all three of his sons would be able to have one for a keepsake.
"It's pretty special," Cullen said. "I think as you get older, you appreciate these things more. And I know when I'm done and sitting at home, I know I'll appreciate it even more. It's obviously pretty special what the Penguins do for a guy like me and make me feel special and go out of their way to do that for the family. It's part of why I love it here so much."
