WASHINGTON, D.C. — Chris Kunitz has sat on his team’s bench throughout 936 career NHL games, and untold thousands before that, and he’s never been hit by a puck while doing so.
At least until Game 1 against the Washington Capitals.
The Pittsburgh Penguins winger was knocked out of Thursday’s game in the first minute of overtime when he turned his head in an attempt to avoid the puck and got struck with it in the left ear.
“You kind of have an inkling it’s coming,” said Kunitz. “I just decided to turn the face. It comes a little faster than you’d expect.”
He wasn’t able to re-enter the game before T.J. Oshie scored at 9:33 of overtime to give Washington a 4-3 win and 1-0 series lead, but he is expected to return to the Penguins lineup for Game 2 on Saturday night.
Kunitz was subjected to concussion testing and doesn’t appear any worse for wear.
He’s pretty lucky. The 36-year-old didn’t have any ear guards on his helmet and the puck actually came at such a precise angle that it went up and under, opening a small cut above his left ear.
“I was bleeding but it wasn’t cut very bad,” said Kunitz. “I didn’t have to have stitches or anything. Blood kept trickling.”
Not surprisingly, his helmet had ear guards attached during Saturday’s morning skate at Verizon Center. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are the only other Penguins to use them.
It’s been a difficult post-season for Kunitz, who was dropped from Crosby’s wing in favour of rookie Conor Sheary during a first-round series win over the New York Rangers. Kunitz is now skating with Malkin and Eric Fehr and was encouraged by their play in Game 1 against the Caps.
“I felt good – a lot better than the previous games,” said Kunitz. “I had a little more energy and jump. I felt like our team was doing the right things.”
The opening game of the series was fairy physical, and Sheary emerged from it feeling OK after taking a knee-on-knee hit from Tom Wilson. He’ll play Game 2.
That play earned Wilson a fine of $2,403.67 from the NHL’s department of player safety, which will make him a repeat offender if he’s disciplined again in the next 18 months.
Wilson rarely misses an opportunity to finish a check and tends to drive opposing players nuts.
“I think I get the message (from the NHL),” said Wilson. “I know they’re watching. I play the game hard. When you play the game that way, you’re going to be under a microscope. You’re finishing checks hard, and up until this one I’ve been completely off the books.
“I’ve hit very hard but very legal. I’m not going to change the way I play.”
