TEMPE, Ariz. -- We all laud Jason Zucker for his tenacious, reckless-abandon playing style that hardly ever wavers.
What we don't laud him enough for is the skill he brings to the table, even if it doesn't always end up on the highlight reel.
On Sunday night in the Penguins' 4-1 win over the Coyotes here at Mullett Arena in Tempe, though, Zucker reminded everyone that he does have plenty of skill, scoring a goal that should get some decent run on Sports Center's Top-10 Plays.
Take a look for yourself:
OK, one more time from a different angle to really do it justice:
"I tried that move on the one before and the goalie played it really well," Zucker said after the game. "He did the same thing again. I just happened to get it under the bar."
The funny part is that Zucker drives to the net in similar fashion quite frequently, which is why it was so nice to see him rewarded after he wasn't able to capitalize on his first try earlier in the game.
It all started with Zucker taking advantage of time and space in the neutral zone. He built speed from his own blue line before slowing down a hair as he dished the puck to Evgeni Malkin at the Coyotes' blue line. To prevent a defender from swiping the puck off Malkin's stick upon entry, Zucker used his own stick to impede the poke attempt.
Suddenly, Zucker found himself with inside positioning on the defender and accelerated downhill, burning by coverage as all attention shifted to Malkin near the middle of the ice. Just as the Coyotes converged on Malkin, he feathered a pass to Zucker racing in with only the goalie to beat.
Zucker was coming in at a bit of an awkward angle, but he did a really good job of keeping the puck on his forehand as long as possible to keep Karel Vejmelka honest. Once he cut across the front of the goal, Zucker quickly moved the puck to his backhand and waited.
And waited.
Finally, with barely any room, Zucker rolled the puck from the heel of his blade to the toe of his blade as he unleashed a wicked backhander that had eyes of its own. It beat Vejmelka and put the Penguins up, 3-1.