Chris Kunitz
Four-time Stanley Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist.
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Chris Kunitz, a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger, spent 15 seasons in the NHL. He is best known for winning four Stanley Cups: one with the Anaheim Ducks in 2007 and three with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2009, 2016, and 2017. He also earned an Olympic gold medal with Team Canada at the 2014 Winter Games.
College and junior
Kunitz began his career in junior hockey with the Melville Millionaires of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League before moving to the NCAA with Ferris State University. In his senior year, he put up 79 points and was a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award in 2003, the same season Ferris State reached the Division I Regional Finals. He was part of the first Ferris State team to ever make an NCAA Tournament appearance.
Professional
After going undrafted, Kunitz signed with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in April 2003. He split his first pro season between Anaheim and their AHL affiliate in Cincinnati. During the 2004–05 lockout, he played for Cincinnati.
In 2005–06, he was claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Thrashers, but the Ducks reclaimed him two weeks later. That season, he played 67 games for Anaheim, scoring 19 goals and 22 assists for 41 points, breaking Paul Kariya’s rookie record of 39 points (Kunitz still qualified as a rookie because he hadn’t played enough games in 2003–04). The record was later broken by Dustin Penner.
In 2006–07, Kunitz improved to 25 goals and 60 points. He helped the Ducks beat the Minnesota Wild, Vancouver Canucks, and Detroit Red Wings in the playoffs, then defeat the Ottawa Senators in the Final for the franchise’s first Stanley Cup. Kunitz was injured during the semifinals against Detroit but returned late in the Final to help clinch the championship in Game 5.
The following season, Kunitz was named an alternate captain for the Ducks, his first such role in the pros. Coach Randy Carlyle said the team wanted to involve younger players in leadership. Kunitz’s production dipped to 50 points that year.
In 2008–09, after a slow start, Kunitz was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins along with prospect Eric Tangradi for defenseman Ryan Whitney. The Penguins needed secondary scoring behind Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. In the 2009 playoffs, Kunitz had 1 goal and 13 assists as Pittsburgh beat the Detroit Red Wings in a rematch of the previous Final, giving him his second Cup in three years.
Lore & Background
Kunitz played Junior A in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League with the Melville Millionaires before joining Ferris State University. In his senior year he recorded 79 points and was a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award in 2003, the same year Ferris State reached the Division I Regional Finals. He was part of the first Ferris State team to make an NCAA Tournament appearance.
After going undrafted, Kunitz signed with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim on April 1, 2003. He was claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Thrashers in 2005–06 but was re-claimed by the Ducks two weeks later.
That season he scored 41 points, surpassing Paul Kariya's club rookie record. In 2006–07 he helped the Ducks win the Stanley Cup, returning from an injury during the Final to clinch in game five. He was named an alternate captain for Anaheim the following season.
In 2008–09, Kunitz was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins along with Eric Tangradi for Ryan Whitney. He recorded 1 goal and 13 assists in the 2009 playoffs as the Penguins won the Stanley Cup.
He later won two more Cups with Pittsburgh in 2016 and 2017. On May 25, 2017, he scored the series-winning goal in double overtime of game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Ottawa Senators, becoming the oldest player to score a game seven playoff series-winning goal at age 37. He assisted on the series-winning goal in the 2017 Final.
Reader's Guide
Chris Kunitz's career is defined by his role as a complementary scorer on championship teams. Originally undrafted, he developed through the NCAA and AHL before establishing himself in the NHL. His most significant tenure was with the Pittsburgh Penguins, where he became a regular on top lines alongside Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Kunitz contributed to four Stanley Cup victories—one with Anaheim and three with Pittsburgh—and scored a memorable double-overtime game-seven winner in the 2017 Eastern Conference Finals.
He also represented Canada internationally, winning a gold medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics. After his playing career, he joined the Chicago Blackhawks organization as a player development adviser and a coach for their AHL affiliate. His career statistics include 13 goals and 29 points in his final NHL season with Tampa Bay, and 5 goals and 10 points in 56 games with Chicago before retiring in 2019.
Career statistics and honours
Medals
- Gold Ice hockey at the 2014 Winter Olympics – Men's tournament
- Silver 2008 IIHF World Championship
- Gold Olympic Games — 2014 Sochi
- Silver World Championships — 2008 Canada
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1996–97 | Yorkton Mallers AAA | SMHL | 64 | 38 | 38 | 76 | 233 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1997–98 | Melville Millionaires | SJHL | 60 | 30 | 27 | 57 | 151 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1998–99 | Melville Millionaires | SJHL | 63 | 57 | 32 | 89 | 222 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 19 |
| 1999–2000 | Ferris State Bulldogs | CCHA | 38 | 20 | 9 | 29 | 70 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2000–01 | Ferris State Bulldogs | CCHA | 37 | 16 | 13 | 29 | 81 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2001–02 | Ferris State Bulldogs | CCHA | 35 | 28 | 10 | 38 | 68 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2002–03 | Ferris State Bulldogs | CCHA | 42 | 35 | 44 | 79 | 56 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2003–04 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | NHL | 21 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2003–04 | Cincinnati Mighty Ducks | AHL | 59 | 19 | 25 | 44 | 101 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 24 |
| 2004–05 | Cincinnati Mighty Ducks | AHL | 54 | 22 | 17 | 39 | 71 | 12 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 20 |
| 2005–06 | Atlanta Thrashers | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2005–06 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | NHL | 67 | 19 | 22 | 41 | 69 | 16 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 8 |
| 2005–06 | Portland Pirates | AHL | 5 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2006–07 | Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 81 | 25 | 35 | 60 | 81 | 13 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 19 |
| 2007–08 | Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 82 | 21 | 29 | 50 | 80 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| 2008–09 | Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 62 | 16 | 19 | 35 | 55 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2008–09 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 20 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 16 | 24 | 1 | 13 | 14 | 19 |
| 2009–10 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 50 | 13 | 19 | 32 | 39 | 13 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 8 |
| 2010–11 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 66 | 23 | 25 | 48 | 47 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| 2011–12 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 82 | 26 | 35 | 61 | 49 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 48 | 22 | 30 | 52 | 39 | 15 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 6 | |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 78 | 35 | 33 | 68 | 66 | 13 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 16 | |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 74 | 17 | 23 | 40 | 56 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 80 | 17 | 23 | 40 | 41 | 24 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 15 | |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 71 | 9 | 20 | 29 | 36 | 20 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 27 | |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | NHL | 82 | 13 | 16 | 29 | 35 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 16 | |
| 2018–19 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 56 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 23 | — | — | — | — | — |
| NHL totals | 1,022 | 268 | 351 | 619 | 746 | 178 | 27 | 66 | 93 | 164 | ||
International
Awards and honours
| Awards | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| College | ||
| All-CCHA First Team | 2001–02 | |
| All-CCHA First Team | 2002–03 | |
| AHCA West First-Team All-American | 2002–03 | |
| CCHA All-Tournament Team | 2003 | |
| NHL | ||
| Stanley Cup champion | 2007, 2009, 2016, 2017 | |
| First All-Star Team | 2013 | |
Tables copied from the source article, totals included as the source gives them: Wikipedia: Chris Kunitz (CC BY-SA 4.0). Wide tables scroll sideways.
More in Pittsburgh Penguins Players
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Chris Kunitz (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Statistics, medals and awards: the tables of the source article.
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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