There could have been a more unlikely hero for the Penguins, probably.
Say, somebody who only got a shift or two per period.
Or maybe a healthy scratch.
But even a guy like that wouldn’t have been a much more improbable than Chris Kunitz to propel the Penguins into the Stanley Cup final for the second spring in a row.
After all, he had failed to score a goal in 21 consecutive playoff games, and had been relegated to a bottom-six role much of the time.
But Kunitz scored the Penguins’ first and third goals in their 3-2 victory against Ottawa in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final Thursday night at PPG Paints Arena.