THE The Pittsburgh Penguins“The history of the organization is full of great players, and we decided to take a look back at the best Penguins players to wear each jersey number. Today, we continue the list by naming the best No. 34 in Penguins history.
Nineteen players have worn No. 34, and honestly, it’s not a very deep list in terms of talent. Andre St-Laurent was a good center in the early ’80s, but most of the others were either one-year players or simply not worthy of this list.
But there was one player in the two consecutive editions of the German Cup in 2016 and 2017 who played an important defensive role in their respective championships. That is the German-born striker Tom Kuhnhackl.
© Charles LeClaire – Imagn Images
Kuhnhackl played for the Penguins from 2015 to 2018. He certainly wasn’t known for his production — he scored just 18 goals and 54 points in 232 career games, including 11 goals and 39 points with Pittsburgh — but he did a remarkable job on the penalty kill and in the defensive zone.
In fact, his first NHL goal was shorthanded against the Tampa Bay Lightning:
But even though Kuhnhackl was known for his defensive acumen, he still had his moments on offense. He scored the shorthanded goal above on the backhand, and he also scored on a penalty shot against the Buffalo Sabres:
And he also scored a lucky goal in the 2016 playoffs against the The Washington Capitals in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Kuhnhackl then played two more seasons in the NHL for the New York Islanders from 2018 to 2020. He has since returned to Europe and currently plays for Adler Mannheim of the DEL in Germany.
Here’s one last clip of Kuhnhackl for your enjoyment, where he perfectly syncs the lyrics of the Penguins’ composition:
Honorable mention: Andre St-Laurent
Related: Best Penguins by Jersey Number: #33
