Cullen set for 1,500th, Dumoulin for return

After Brian Dumoulin walked into the Penguins' dressing room following Tuesday's morning skate, Blues Traveler's "Runaround," which had been playing obnoxiously loud, came to a screeching halt.

The defenseman pulled the plug on the music, saying it was nothing against the song or the band. He even confessed that Goo Goo Dolls are his favorite. Yep, tonight is "90's Night" at PPG Paints Arena and the Penguins were really getting into it.

But it's also the 1,500th game in the career of Matt Cullen, who broke into the NHL in the fall of 1997. Dumoulin said he thought it should be "60's Night" for Cullen.

Ouch.

Such is the good-natured ribbing that the 42-year-old takes. But, jokes aside, Cullen's teammates, many of whom were just in diapers or learning to skate in 1997, had nothing but kind words for the veteran forward.

Kris Letang, who won a pair of Stanley Cups with Cullen in Pittsburgh, called his teammate: "An example."

Nick Bjugstad, who grew up in Cullen's native Minnesota, said he used to watch videos of him demonstrating stick-handling technique.

Zach Aston-Reese, whose locker stall sits next to Cullen's, says he tries to absorb as much information as he can from his elder teammate.

"I was trying to wrap my head around it earlier for what he's going through and how that feels, but it's got to be crazy playing across almost three decades," Aston-Reese said. "I don't know. It's a pretty big accomplishment."

Garrett Wilson has played just 67 games in his four-year career, but 33 of them have come this season and almost all of them have come with Cullen as his center.

"It's an honor to be able to play on his line the last little bit," Wilson was saying. "He's a real easy guy to play with and he makes everything a lot easier, I think."

A pre-game tribute is planned for Cullen, who will surpass Mike Modano as second all-time for games played by an American player. Cullen will rank 20th all-time.

Of the 19 players ahead of him, only two -- Patrick Marleau (1,641) and Joe Thornton (1,550) -- are still active. Only one of the 19, Shane Doan, isn't or isn't likely to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. But Cullen, a defensive specialist who has just two 20-plus goal seasons to his resume, will have played twice as many games as Hall of Fame inductee Cam Neely (726). While Doan is synonymous with the Coyotes organization, Cullen has survived 21 years in the league by playing on eight different teams, including multiple stints with three teams, including the Penguins.

But Mike Sullivan, who played 709 games over his 11-year playing career, has a deep respect for what Cullen has been able to accomplish with his hockey IQ and skating ability.

"I think it's a reflection of his passion for the game, his professionalism," Sullivan was saying when I asked. "There aren't too many guys that take care of themselves and train the way he does, lives the way he does in order to give himself the best opportunity to continue to play and sustain his performance. When you look at players that have longevity, what jumps out at me are those attributes."

THE ESSENTIALS

• Media notes

• Team statistics

• NHL scoreboard

• NHL standings

THE SESSION

•Dumoulin was out of the red and into the yellow on Tuesday. The defenseman was cleared for contact and his jersey reflected it just 10 days after sustaining a concussion during the Feb. 23 outdoor game in Philadelphia on a hit from Wayne Simmonds. Whether Dumoulin plays tonight is still to be determined. He'll be a game-time decision, according to Sullivan.

"Taking all the necessary steps, so feeling really good right now," Dumoulin said. Stay tuned on that one.

• Kris Letang won't play tonight but the fact that he skated in a red, non-contact jersey is a promising sign that he's getting close to returning. Letang said his injury, sustained while getting tackled trying to intervene on Dumoulin's behalf, was not related to the neck injury that required surgery in the spring of 2017. He tried to downplay its significance, saying that it shouldn't hinder him moving forward.

"There's nothing more to it," he said. "It's an injury that we're taking care of."

As for how he got injured, Letang said he had no regrets and would do the same thing all over again:

If he had to do it again, Letang says he’d still jump in the scrum. #dkps #penguins pic.twitter.com/W5Oo3zbgLk

— Chris Bradford (@PghBradford) March 5, 2019

Did you expect anything less?

• The Penguins are 1-0-1 vs. the Panthers this season with the home team winning each of the first two meetings. The Panthers might be out of a playoff spot but they are hardly void of talent, especially up front with centers Aleksander Barkov and Pittsburgh native Vincent Trocheck. Sullivan said both players "fly under the radar" in South Florida.

"Both Barkov and Trocheck are dynamic players," Sullivan said. "Trocheck brings a lot of speed. Barkov is big and strong, but has a complete 200-foot game. He's hard to play against, a good faceoff guy. This is a good team. They're deep at the forward position. They can score goals. Their power play is dynamic. It'll be a big challenge for us."

Florida's power play ranks third at 26.2 percent while it is fifth in shots per game (33.3) and 10th in goals per game (3.14).

• Aston-Reese has scored 340 fewer goals in his career but he says he's tried to help Kessel get through his 15-game goal-less slump with some encouraging words.

"I try to tell him to stay positive," Aston-Reese was telling me. "But I guess Phil's an honest guy and he'll tell you how he feels. But I think at some point, they're going to have to start going in. He's had a handful of chances the last five or six games. It's just a matter of time before the floodgates open for him."

• As expected, Matt Murray will be in goal. He is 4-1 with a .936 save percentage in his career vs. Florida.

• After a practice day Monday, the Penguins held an optional skate. Those not taking the ice included Sidney Crosby and Kessel.

• The Panthers have lost four in a row, and have fallen 10 points out of a wildcard spot. However, only one of those losses came in regulation and that was Sunday's 3-2 loss to the hapless Senators.

“We had chances to win against Ottawa, but our defensive game was too loose," coach Bob Boughner said. "Against a team that we know is going to be desperate, we have to bring it tonight.”

• Barkov and top-line left winger Jonathan Huberdeau have combined for 14 goals and 14 assists over the last nine games.

• The Panthers, who are 0-6-1 in their last seven in Pittsburgh, held a fairly well-attended optional skate Tuesday at PPG.

• Boughner said that Roberto Luongo will start in net. The 39-year-old is 16-11-6 vs. Pittsburgh in his career.