Welcome to our series on who wore each number best for the Penguins.
The idea is being openly borrowed from our new hockey writer, Cody Tucker, and his project at the Lansing State Journal covering all the uniform numbers worn through Michigan State football history, one that's been well received by their readers and prompted heavy discussion and debate.
Under the organization of Taylor Haase, and following the voting of a big chunk of our staff, we'll publish one new one each day until completion, which should be right around the start of training camp.
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Name: Randy Cunneyworth
Number: 15
Position: Left wing
Born: May 10, 1961 in Etobicoke, Ontario
Seasons with Penguins: 1985-1989
Statistics with Penguins: 295 games, 101 goals, 115 assists in regular season, 11 games, 3 goals, 8 assists in playoffs
WHY CUNNEYWORTH?
By no means was Randy Cunneyworth a star, but he was a very valuable role player on the Penguins' teams of the mid- to late-1980s that transformed the organization from a perennial doormat to a contender.
He came to Pittsburgh on Oct. 4, 1985, six days before the start of the regular season, in a trade for Pat Hughes. Sabres GM Scotty Bowman's eighth-round pick in 1980, Cunneyworth had 21 NHL games under his belt, but none since 1982 after spending the previous three years toiling in the AHL with the Rochester Americans.
But the 24-year-old quickly found a home in Pittsburgh. At 6-foot and 198 pounds, Cunneyworth wasn't the biggest player but he played big, amassing 513 penalty minutes in a Penguins uniform:
He also displayed a decent scoring touch. He averaged 25 goals per season in four years with the club. In 1987-88, Cunneyworth enjoyed a career year, registering 35 goals and 39 assists for 74 points.
The following season, Cunneyworth put up 156 penalty minutes and garnered one vote for the Selke Trophy as the Penguins made their first postseason appearance since 1982.
Pittsburgh swept the Rangers in the first round to advance to the Patrick Division Finals against the cross-state rival Flyers. Late in the third period of Game 4 at Philadelphia, Cunneyworth collided with Mario Lemieux at center ice while chasing down defenseman Terry Carkner, knocking Lemieux from the game with a neck injury in a 4-1 loss. Lemieux was apparently OK because two nights later he tied postseason records by scoring five goals and three assists as Pittsburgh pushed Philadelphia to the brink of elimination with a 10-7 win.
Cunneyworth scored a pair of goals in Game 6 but they were the only goals the Penguins scored in a 6-2 loss at the Spectrum. Philadelphia then closed out the series by scoring a convincing 4-1 win in Game 7 at the Civic Arena.
That turned out to be Cunneyworth's last game with the Penguins. On June 17, 1989, he was traded to Winnipeg along with Dave McLlwain and Rick Tabaracci for Randy Gilhen, Jim Kyte and Andrew McBain.
Cunneyworth went on to play another decade in the NHL with the Jets, Whalers, Blackhawks, Senators and, finally, back to where he started in Buffalo. He played his final season in 1999-2000 as a player/assistant coach with the Americans and retired at age 38.
WHAT'S HE DOING NOW?
Cunneyworth is a hockey lifer. The 57-year-old is currently out of the NHL after being let go last summer as the Sabres' player development coach by incoming GM Jason Botterill.
Prior to that, Cunneyworth had served as an AHL coach for nine seasons with Rochester (2000-08) and Hamilton (2010-11), compiling a record of 350-302-68 in 720 games to rank eighth all-time in wins and games coached in AHL.
In between he served as an assistant coach with the Atlanta Thrashers and Montreal Canadiens. On Dec. 17, 2011, he was hired in the interim to replace Jacques Martin as head coach. Following the season, amidst great controversy in French-speaking Quebec that Cunneyworth wasn't bilingual, Canadiens owner Geoff Molson demoted Cunneyworth back to assistant coach. One month later, he was fired by incoming head coach Michel Therrien.
IT WAS SPOKEN
"It was my time for making it. And staying at this level.” -- Cunneyworth, on sticking in the NHL.
“I remember having some pretty productive years relative to helping the team out and doing a job for Mario." -- Cunneyworth, on his years in Pittsburgh.
HONORABLE MENTIONS AT NO. 15
Shawn McEachern
Randy Gilhen
Any debate?
Very little. Though Gilhen and McEachern both won the Stanley Cup in consecutive years wearing No. 15, no one wore it longer or with more distinction that Cunneyworth.
Tomorrow: DK has No. 16.
Yesterday: Chris Kunitz
