Defenseman Kevin Czuczman finds his place with Penguins

For however long he is in the NHL, Pittsburgh Penguins reserve defenseman Kevin Czuczman wants to make a name for himself.

But before getting into that, how exactly do you say that name?

“I still don’t know,” quipped forward Joseph Blandisi. “I couldn’t spell it for sure.”

“When I first got to Wilkes-Barre, I was a healthy scratch my first game there, and I was watching with someone,” forward Sam Lafferty said. “I was like, who’s this ‘Cooz-man’ guy? Then someone told me how you say it. I was pretty shocked, but we just call him ‘Churchy.’

“Churchy” is Czuczman’s nickname, which is based on that time-honored, basic hockey formula of taking the most prominent syllable of a surname and pairing it with a “Y.”

Still, how does “Czucz” become “Church?”

“I think every team I go to, it’s like 22 new conversations of how you get ‘Church-man’ out of that last name,” explained Czuczman, a native of London, Ontario, who is of Ukrainian descent. “You say ‘Chuch-man’ really fast, and it comes out ‘Church-man.’ We’ve been saying that since my dad, my grandfather. So it’s been forever.”

It hasn’t been forever since the last time Czuczman was on an NHL lineup sheet, but it’s been a while. Nearly six years have passed since he played with the New York Islanders in 2014.

As an undrafted free agent, he appeared in 13 contests and recorded two assists for the Islanders. He has been firmly entrenched in the American Hockey League ranks since, including the past three seasons with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

But for nearly three weeks, he has enjoyed life in the NHL. The Penguins recalled Czuczman on Dec. 20 because of considerable injuries.

With Brian Dumoulin (left ankle) and Justin Schultz (undisclosed) convalescing from long-term injuries, Czuczman got the nod partly because of ailments to Zach Trotman (concussion) and David Warsofsky (groin), each of whom have played significant minutes for the big club in recent seasons.

As it is, Czuczman has been a healthy scratch for all eight NHL contests he’s been eligible for. Regardless, he’s appreciative of what simply being in the NHL offers.

“Obviously, you want to play, but I’m learning a ton here,” said Czuczman, 28. “Just picking up how guys shoot the puck and how they prepare themselves for the games and stuff. It’s really cool to see. … You want to soak as much as you can and take that and flip it into your own game.”

The Penguins see value in the the left-shooting Czuczman, even if it doesn’t manifest itself in playing in and NHL contest. The organization re-signed him to a two-year, two-way contract during the offseason. That’s a considerable deal for a player who had to overcame left shoulder surgery during the 2018 offseason.

Despite being limited to 65 AHL games last season, he still received the multiyear deal.

“He’s been a leader in Wilkes-Barre,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “He’s one of those guys you like to have around your young players because of the influence that he has. He’s a good pro. He works hard. He controls all the things within his power to give himself the best chance to be successful. Because of that, he’s turned himself into a real solid defenseman. That’s one of the reasons he’s here right now.”

“He goes out of his way to make you feel comfortable,” Lafferty said. When I first got to Wilkes-Barre, he was one of the guys I leaned on.”

Czuczman opted to re-sign with the Penguins despite the team’s depth at the blue line, at least when healthy.

“They were loyal to me throughout my shoulder surgery,” said Czuczman, an alternate captain with the AHL Penguins. “They don’t care if you’re a first-round, undrafted, whatever you are, they treat you the exact same. For a guy in my situation, they give you every opportunity to make the team. They let the best players play. There’s no politics.”

Czuczman’s injury occurred in the 2018 postseason and afforded him an opportunity to mostly rehabilitate during the offseason, but he missed the first month of last season.

He has an all-too-familiar appreciation for what All-Star forward Jake Guentzel is enduring barely a week removed from a procedure on his right shoulder, which is expected to sideline him four to six months.

“I’ve absolutely been there,” said Czuczman, who said his left shoulder is stronger than his right following the rehabilitation. “I can imagine what he’s going through right now. It’s a tough injury. … You feel like, ‘I should be doing something. I want to be playing.’ That’s when it hits you. It’s definitely a mental battle.”

Getting on the ice in Pittsburgh always will be a battle for Czuczman. Things would need to go haywire — another injury on the blue line or some other type of absence.

Nevertheless, he’s grateful to be part of an organization that finds value in his style of play and approach to his vocation.

“They encourage getting up the ice on that fourth-man attack,” Czuczman said. “One of my strengths is skating. They like playing fast, and it works right into my favor. It’s a seamless transition here (from) Wilkes-Barre.”

“For the success they had the last few (Stanley Cup titles), you look at all the guys that came up from Wilkes-Barre. It’s really cool to see. When you’re in Wilkes-Barre, it gives you absolute hope that’s there’s a road map to Pittsburgh.”

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