Guentzel, Cullen, Kunitz reflect on 2017 Stanley Cup: Part 1

Members from the 2017 Stanley Cup Championship team - Matt Cullen, Chris Kunitz and Jake Guentzel - joined host Josh Getzoff to discuss some of their favorite memories from the run ahead of AT&T SportsNet's re-broadcasts of the four victories from that Final. Game 1 will air on Monday, while Game 2 will air on Wednesday.

Click here for 2017 Stanley Cup Final rewind content.

Here are some of the highlights from the conversation, which covers from the start of the 2016-17 season through Games 1 and 2 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final against Nashville. Part 2 will cover the remainder of the Final and the ensuing celebration.

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\ Ahead of the first championship run, a lot of young players came up from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and made an impact - Matt Murray, Bryan Rust, Conor Sheary, Tom Kuhnhackl…the list goes on. Ahead of the second championship run, there was, of course, one young player in particular who stood out.*

Getzoff:"When you guys think back to that time in November 2016, what's your first impression of Jake Guentzel when he walks into the room?"

Kunitz: "Go ahead, Cully (laughs)."

Cullen: "(Laughs) Well, I remember watching Jake, I've probably told him that, when I was playing for the Wild and he was just a young little buck playing for the Hill-Murray…what do they call you guys, Guentz?"

Guentzel:"The Pioneers!"

Cullen: "But yeah, so it was fun for me. I've known his dad for quite a while. He was one of the coaches who recruited me when I was going to college years ago. So pretty good familiarity with the family. So yeah, it was cool to see him. I remember watching him when he was a little kid playing high school hockey. He still looked like a little kid when he walked in the locker room. But his game had definitely grown a lot. Being a guy from Minnesota and seeing another young kid from Minnesota come in, it's always fun. You know where he came from and who he is. I was happy and obviously a pretty cool start to a career."

Kunitz: "I agree. Watching somebody be able to come out and have success right off the bat, bring that excitement and joy, all of us are sports fans at heart. So to see somebody have such success early on is something you wish everybody could do because you know how hard it is. A lot of guys can't produce that every time they come up and can't show what they can do and get sent back down. For Jake's cause, he came in and sparked everything."

\ Guentzel scored twice in his NHL debut on Nov. 21 against NY Rangers, including on the first shot of his first shift. The second that first puck went in, Rick Tocchet turned to Mike Sullivan on the bench, and the two of them exchanged a look and a smile while the players in front of them were losing it. "It's funny, the reaction of all the guys on the bench." Tocchet said. "Sid was laughing. Everybody was smiling like, that doesn't happen very often."*

But the funny part about that is infamous prankster Marc-Andre Fleury had originally told all of the guys that everyone should just stay seated on the bench and not celebrate at all.

Cullen: "Yeah, that was supposed to happen but I don't think it did (laughs). I think everybody was so excited to see that one go in. It was like all bets are off, you know?"

\ Another time that everybody on the Penguins bench had a priceless reaction to a goal was when Sidney Crosby earned his 1,000th NHL point by assisting on Kunitz's goal on Feb. 16 against Winnipeg. Crosby's teammates that were on the ice with him immediately mobbed him, before Kunitz and Kris Letang peeled off to chase the referee for the milestone puck to give to their captain.*

Then, while Crosby was celebrating on the ice, more of his teammates actually left the bench to come onto the ice and congratulate him. When he went to skate along the bench, where the coaching staff was clapping in recognition, for the typical post-goal fist-bump, they all got up and surrounded him. Fleury even skated up from his crease to give Crosby a hug.

Kunitz: "It's obviously an honor to be part of somebody's special moment and 1,000 points is something well beyond what a lot of us could ever achieve, so to be out there and factor in on some of them is amazing. It was my 250th goal, so I thought maybe I should have got the puck, but I didn't get any of it. I know how sentimental Sid is, I thought maybe he'd cut me off a little slice of it. But I got nothing (laughs). But no, obviously a great honor to go out there and find a goal on somebody's 1,000th point like that. All jokes aside, he's done amazing things for every one of us who get to play with him.

Cullen:"Typical Sid, eh? Hogging the spotlight?"

\ The NHL trade deadline took place on March 1, and while the Penguins made some moves, perhaps the biggest news of the day was the deal that general manager Jim Rutherford didn't make - keeping Fleury in the fold.*

Kunitz: "Just his character, he's a guy that's infectious. Every day he shows up to the rink he was smiling, playing games or competing after practice in the small-ice games we all like to do. I think that would have really disrupted the locker room. I know it was probably really hard from a management side to hang on to somebody that's not going to be playing every game. But I think for us in the locker room, it was the right decision to keep him there and good things happen when you have good people around."

Guentzel:"As a young guy, he's always talking and he takes you right in and just a super nice guy and a guy we all wanted around. He came up huge for us. He's definitely a big reason why we won that year."

Cullen: "It was kind of the elephant in the room coming towards the deadline, obviously that's what was talked about a lot. Sort of a changing of the guard was going on and we all knew it. But the way that he handled it after the deadline and how much he gave to his teammates, when you talk about somebody who helps build a culture in an organization, somebody that's selfless like that who's willing to step aside and support his teammates, then ended up playing a massive role - those first two rounds, he was unbelievable. I don't think we get through the Washington series if he doesn't play as well as he did. He was unreal. Being able to have two high-end goaltenders like that, I don't think we win if we didn't have both."

\ With all three players on the call being forwards, it was interesting to hear their thoughts on the Penguins' battered blue line that would be entering the playoffs without its best player after Kris Letang was ruled out following surgery to repair a herniated disc in his neck.*

Kunitz: "Nobody can replace a guy like Letang on the backend who can move and eat up minutes like him. But they all grew their games a little bit, especially (Justin Schultz) on that power play. Being able to come in, sometimes you get intimidated when you move in from a different team and you have to play with these superstars. But he wasn't shy about shooting the puck and I think that was something that really kicked off our guys. Everybody bought in to the fact that everybody is going to be able to do this and we're going to go four lines and seven, maybe eight D-men are going to have to play. Missing a guy like Tanger is huge, but it helped everybody else step up and kind of solidify that they wanted to be there and prove something, too, going into a back-to-back year."

Cullen: "Yeah, that's one of those things that you worry about how it's going to hit you as you go into the playoffs, missing Tanger. He was such a huge part of the first run and was just so good for our team. It was a good example of filling a hole by committee. Schultzy was so good offensively. (Trevor Daley) picked up a bunch of big minutes. (Ian Cole) was awesome. Mark Streit came in and played some good hockey for us down the stretch. And obviously Ronnie Hainsey. It was cool how everybody rallied around it and picked up the slack."

Guentzel: "It just shows how much the additions really helped us. It was a big committee thing back there when you have to replace Tanger. I think everybody did a great job."

\ First up was Columbus, where Fleury stepped in after Murray was hurt in warmups ahead of Game 1. Guentzel had a breakout performance in that series, where it felt like every puck he touched went in the net. His best moment came when he capped off his first career playoff hat trick with the overtime winner in Game 3 at Nationwide Arena.*

Guentzel: "I think going into that game, you're not really sure what to expect in an away arena in the playoffs like that. I was pretty in awe of how loud and intense it really was. I think they scored maybe first shift and the building was rocking, so definitely pretty intense for me. I just remember Shears and Sid below the net. They were doing their thing and Sid was going back and forth and I'm just trying to find an open spot. Just kind of snuck in the side door and it was kind of a blur after that, because first overtime goal in the playoffs, it's a pretty cool moment."

\ Next up was Washington, where the players had as much fun playing in that seven-game series as we all did watching it.*

Cullen: "What I remember about that one is that Game 7 in Washington was maybe our best game of the year. It was so fun. I remember throughout the series just thinking to myself, what good hockey this is, eh? It was so much fun to play and the level of hockey - the fan in you just came out at times where it was like oh my God, that was such a good play. It was two really talented teams playing really high-level hockey. I don't think there's many series where I had more fun just playing the game. Such great plays on both ends, high-tempo, physical, obviously a lot of hatred between the two teams."

\ Next up was Ottawa, who had a completely different type of game compared to the Blue Jackets and Capitals. They were a patient, defensive-minded team who liked to sit back and frustrate their opponents with their version of the trap.*

Kunitz: "I remember us maybe getting a little frustrated in that first game because we were used to that high-flying style, where we'll dictate the pace and how we do this. When they clog up the neutral zone like that and kind of keep you to the outside all the time, it makes it tough. I remember their goalie playing exceptionally well. You'd shoot 50 pucks and come up with not that many chances. Then they'd come down on a partial breakaway and score a goal. The whole series was more of a mental than a physical grind unlike the Columbus or the Washington series. It was like, we can do this, we've just got to keep doing it the right way over and over and we'll have that success. It took a little bit longer to figure them out and how we had to do it. But when we bought in and did the right thing, the better games we played, those were the reasons why."

Cullen: "Yeah, it wasn't a great matchup for us. It wasn't a team that liked to get up and down the ice like we did. So the mental side of it was hard, it was challenging. It wasn't a lot of offensive opportunities, they really sat back and waited for you to make a mistake and we were a team that liked to press the pace and push the issue a little bit. So it was challenging. I remember those first couple games it was like man, it's hard to come by opportunities here. You spend time in their zone but you don't get any shots, then all of a sudden they get a great chance off a bouncing puck. They had a great goalie, they were a veteran team and they had a lot of guys that were just fighting. And they had a good thing going, you know? It was just one of those teams that got on a good run. It makes you nervous, a little bit, because it wasn't a great matchup for our group. But we were able to find a way to grind it out and find some patience in our game."

\ After the Senators took a 2-1 series lead, Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan went to a now-healthy Murray for Game 4, and the rookie goaltender stayed in net the rest of the way. Sullivan called it the most difficult decision he ever made as a coach, and probably will ever make.*

Cullen: "It was a big change. For all of us. It was a big deal. But it was kind of the mentality of the whole season, like you know what, guys are stepping up, filling in here and there. it was probably a really tough call for the coaches, I imagine. That's not an easy deal. It had to be a really tough one. Both those guys are great goalies. But they all handled it really well. And Matt came in and played really well, had a couple great series after that. It was a big moment in that playoff run. That was a huge switch."

Kunitz: "For me, it was kind of disappointing on our side to put our goalie in that situation, a guy that's so beloved in the locker room. I think you always kind of knew in the back of your mind they were going to make the switch if there was any faltering, and it was kind of like ah, we let our guy down and now he's out. That being said, then Murr comes in and he makes it calm. He always made the calm play. He was never out of control. That helped our team, too. You see somebody going down and not going to get to play, now you have somebody that's just as capable to go back in there and give us the fighting chance. But I think at first it was like ah, we let our guy down. But the good thing is we have another No. 1 and they're ready to take over and let us get past these guys."

\ Kunitz hadn't scored a goal since Feb. 16 (the night of Crosby's 1,000th point) entering Game 7, yet he netted two goals - including the double overtime series winner - and an assist for a three-point night in the biggest game of the season. He etched his name in Penguins history and folklore with the iconic goal.*

Cullen: "I thought we played really well in that Game 7, you just had to be patient and stay the course, and we did. I don't know if I've ever felt better when somebody scored a goal then when Kuni put that floater in (laughs). Man, it was a great goal. It was pretty cool too that it was Sid to Kuni, you've seen that play so many times and Kuni did such a good job of finding that little area to get the shot. Man, from the bench that was unreal watching that thing go in. it was one of the best feelings I've had in hockey."

Kunitz: "For me, I wasn't one of the top performers leading into anything. I think one thing you always convince yourself of when you're playing down the lineup is if you ever get your chance and get out there, earn every shift you can. I remember sitting beside Shears and Cully and saying, we're feeling it tonight. Let's just keep doing this. I think for the Ottawa style, it was hard on them. They couldn't just sit back because we kept taking those leads. We still had lots of chances. It wasn't like we weren't getting our chances, we just weren't scoring. For us, that was a better style. One game and win it and go on, whereas they wanted to sit back and control things. We found a way to get up 2-1, they score, then for it to take that long is obviously a huge special moment in my life to be able to score an OT winner like that. The last goal I scored in Pittsburgh, obviously means a ton to me. always fun revisiting that goal and watching that celebration, it's the greatest feeling in sports when we all celebrate like that."

Guentzel: "Another Game 7, a lot of excitement. First one in Pittsburgh like that, the fans were very passionate and loud. Just for the game to go back and forth, to have it go into double OT, you're a little nervous. To see Kuni score that one was definitely relieving and just to know you're going to the Stanley Cup Final was pretty cool for me, especially in my first playoff run."

\ And finally, next up was Nashville. Throughout the playoffs, Kunitz said they had been keeping an eye on the Predators' storybook run to the Stanley Cup Final.*

Kunitz:"You're in hotels together on the road and we all sit there and just watch the other games. So you just see the buildup of what each team is doing and how they're playing, the style they're playing. I think we all knew they had a great D corps and goaltending team. We weren't sure how their style was going to fit against ours, just with them having the puck movers and guys like that on their back end. But we knew it was going to be a tough matchup, for sure. Anybody that gets to the Final, you never know how it's going to go. But I think we watched their journey just as it went on in that month and a half to two months before playing them, for sure."

\ What everyone remembers from Game 1 is the Penguins getting out to a 3-0 lead…and then being held without a shot for exactly 37 minutes as the Predators evened the score.*

Cullen: "Yeah, I didn't realize it was 37 minutes (laughs). You see it happen in the playoffs, you get ahead by three early in the game and it's just so natural. I mean, we had a team that had been through a lot, so you wouldn't think that would happen to us. But literally you just want the game to be over. You start watching the clock in the first period and you're like man, we've got enough goals to win, let's just get through this game. The other team starts pressing and you just get on your heels. I think that's what happened."

Fortunately, Guentzel stepped up with yet another huge goal - his 10th of the playoffs.

Guentzel: "All I remember is that in the first period we came out hot with a 3-0 lead and not sure what really happened in the second and the third there, but they chipped away and came back to tie it. I got a good pass from Cully coming through the middle and just tried to throw a puck on net through a screen. I was lucky enough for it to beat him. First goal in the Stanley Cup Final, a pretty special moment."

Kunitz: "You don't want to go out and expend all that energy once you have that three-goal lead, you want to just get through that game. The roller coaster of playoffs is if you don't take the will from the other team, they're going to find a way to get back in. We learned our lesson at that point, like hey, if we don't go out there and play the whole time we're not going to have success. Jake getting that goal really kickstarted us to get back to playing the right way and carrying that throughout the series, knowing that we have to keep playing our game and not take our foot off the pedal."

\ Nick Bonino added an empty-net goal to give Pittsburgh a 5-3 lead in Game 1. Unfortunately, Bonino broke his leg blocking a slapshot from P.K. Subban during a penalty kill in the first period of Game 2.*

Guentzel: "What I remember about that is when he blocked a shot, he was on the ground, he got back up and tried to block another one. That just shows what kind of player and guy he is. Just a guy who's willing to do whatever it takes for us to win. You definitely need those guys on your team and he's one of those guys who would do that."

Bonino returned for the start of the second and finished the rest of the game, but was not able to play the rest of the series.

Kunitz: "I think we all hold our breath every time somebody gets hit with a puck and they can't get off the ice, especially in playoffs. Bones was a big part of our group, too. I really enjoyed him and had fun with him. He was able to manipulate our locker room and was a guy who played. He played huge penalty kill minutes and got in front of guys who are going to shoot those shots. And guys on the bench, when you see that, you hold your breath and see him come back so you kind of let that air out like, he's okay. Then to find out later that he's not going to be able to play because it's broken…it's a badge of courage to come back out there and try."

\ The Penguins' quick-strike ability was again on display in Game 2. After the teams went into the first intermission tied 1-1, neither scored in the second. Then, over a 3:18-minute span in the third, the Penguins exploded for three goals. Guentzel started the surge with his second of the game, followed by Phil Kessel and Evgeni Malkin, to give Pittsburgh a 4-1 win.*

Guentzel: "Just a play off the faceoff and Rusty made a great play, pass off the pads right to me and pretty much an open net for me, so that one was pretty easy. I just think the crowd really got us going after that goal and it just filtered down the whole group and we just kept using that and then Phil got his goal and it kept going. The crowd got into it and we used that momentum."

Kunitz: "I remember Geno's goal, coming down the bench side and shooting it far side over his glove. It's a goal that he had scored previously against Pekka Rinne. I think Pekka didn't really have a great record in Pittsburgh either. It was one of those things where maybe if we just stay in his head, this will work to our favor. We have home ice, we're going to play four games here. I just remember having that confidence that this guy, maybe he does struggle in Pittsburgh and that's a real thing."