The Pittsburgh Penguins’ organizational history has a plethora of great players, and we’ve decided to go through the best Penguins’ players to wear each jersey number. Today, we continue the list by naming the best #36 in Penguins’ history.
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Fourteen players have worn #36 for the Penguins, including guys like Matthew Barnaby, Tom Kostopoulos, John Curry, and even Bryan Rust for a brief period of time.
As for the best to wear the number? Jussi Jokinen.
© Charles LeClaire – Imagn Images
Jokinen played for Pittsburgh from the trade deadline in 2013 to the end of the season in 2014, and he was a pretty serviceable player for the team. Taken by Dallas in the sixth round of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft, Jokinen outplayed his draft position and blossomed into a a good middle-six forward with the Stars, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Carolina Hurricanes before joining the Penguins.
He had great playmaking instincts, and he was also proficient at breakouts. In fact, he was partly responsible for starting what was coined at the “Finnish Breakout” on the power play and was adopted by several teams.
While with the Penguins, he did spend some time playing on a line with Evgeni Malkin, and he recorded seven goals and 11 points in 10 games upon his arrival in Pittsburgh in 2013.
But what he was best-known for was his ability in the shootout. He scored in his first nine shootout attempts to begin his NHL career, and, in fact, he scored the lone goal and the shootout winner in his Penguins’ debut on May 4, 2013:
Even though Jokinen wasn’t necessarily known for his goal-scoring, he had spurts where he showed off the tools and talent of a goal-scorer with his soft hands around the net and his wicked release on the snapshot:
Following a 21-goal, 57-point 2013-14 season, Jokinen signed a three-year deal with the Florida Panthers. In the 2017-18 season – his last in the NHL – he played for four different teams, having signed with the Edmonton Oilers before being traded to the Los Angeles Kings, who then waived him. He was claimed by the Columbus Blue Jackets and dealt to the Vancouver Canucks before the trade deadline in 2018.
He finished his NHL career with 191 goals and 563 points in 951 games.
Honorable mentions: J.J. Daigneault, Matthew Barnaby, Tom Kostopoulos
