Ex-Penguins backup goaltender Jeff Zatkoff, 'Mr. Game 1,' retires

“Regional sales representative” isn’t a title that captures the imagination.

It feels like one of those corporate-speak idioms that George Carlin might have diced up in a comedic routine.

Frankly, it sounds kind of boring.

And it’s certainly not as intriguing as “Mr. Game 1.”

Yet, that’s what Jeff Zatkoff goes by these days. And he couldn’t be happier.

The former Penguins backup goaltender is now in the financial sector, having hung up his Vaughn V6 2200 glove and blocker this past fall.

After terminating the final year of his contract with the Straubing Tigers of Germany’s Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) due in part to the coronavirus pandemic, Zatkoff, 33, has returned to Pittsburgh to start his new career with TriState Capital Bank, an organization that serves middle market businesses.

“It was accelerated by the pandemic,” Zatkoff said by telephone on Monday. “I had another year to go back to Germany and play. The season was cut short last year, then this year, it was delayed. There was no clear start date. There were a lot of proposed salary cuts, and it just came to a point where it wasn’t really financially worthwhile for my family in terms of quarantining, all that kind stuff.”

Through a common connection with a teammate from his collegiate career with Miami, Ohio, Zatkoff found his next gig with TriState.

“I really looked everywhere (for a new career) to be honest because I didn’t have a clear idea 100% of what I wanted to do. I was a little bit lost. … It’s a new challenge. I feel like I’m still young enough that I had a successful first career and so I’m looking forward to having a just as successful second career.”

During his first career, Zatkoff spent 13 years in the professional ranks. A third-round draft pick by the Los Angeles Kings in 2006, he played for three NHL organizations, including the Columbus Blue Jackets.

By any measure, his most memorable moment in the NHL came during the early stages of the 2016 postseason.

With starter Marc-Andre Fleury and rising prospect Matt Murray each sidelined because of concussions, Zatkoff was pressed into service to open Game 1 of an Eastern Conference first round series against the New York Rangers.

Starting his first game in nearly two months, Zatkoff made 35 saves on 37 shots and directed his team to a 5-2 win at the then Consol Energy Center.

Two months and 15 wins later, Zatkoff and the Penguins were Stanley Cup champions.

“He was the third-string goalie after Matt Murray came up,” former Penguins defenseman Ben Lovejoy said. “He spent the rest of the year in Pittsburgh. He probably thought he would never play again. He came every day, he worked incredibly hard in practice, he was still in the locker room doing his thing as the third-string goalie. But still very much a huge part of our team. Both goalies went down with concussions late in the season and Jeff Zatkoff came in. I’m sure he was terrified. It felt like he hadn’t played in months. He came in guns blazing. He was fired up. And he gave us a chance to win.

In the aftermath of that triumph, Zatkoff became known as “Mr. Game 1.”

“That’s all right,” Zatkoff chuckled. “That’s a good memory. I have the stick that I used for the game. I have the puck. I have some pictures from the game, after the game. That will always be a special memory, have a special place in my heart when I look back on my hockey career.”

As it turns out, he’s responsible for that nickname.

“He was a guy that had many self-proclaimed nicknames. Immediately, after the game, he started calling himself ‘Mr. Game 1,’” Lovejoy revealed. “It was entirely his creation, his concoction and I will call him ‘Mr. Game 1’ every time I see him for the rest of his life.’”

Zatkoff opened that season as the backup goaltender but eventually lost that role to Murray, who made a quick ascension through the team’s ranks, eventually replacing Fleury as the starter.

Despite being demoted, Zatkoff remained a significant presence for the team throughout the 2015-16 season which was trying at times.

“He talked louder than anyone that I ever played with,” Lovejoy said. “Usually, when that happens, you just want a guy to shut up. But Jeff Zatkoff batted about .980 with his jokes and with his commentary. He was just a guy you wanted to be around. He was the backup goalie when we were struggling with the (2015-16) season (and) the coaching change to Mike Sullivan. He was a huge part of us continuing to keep a positive culture and keep a belief system in ourselves.”

In his mid-30s, Zatkoff still had the ability to continue playing, but the accounting major from Miami took an analytical look where he was at this stage of his career and decided it was best to move on.

After spending so many hours of his life (to say nothing of the hours members of his family probably contributed) toward becoming a professional hockey player, how difficult was it to simply walk away?

“You definitely think, ‘Can I get one more year in,’” Zatkoff said. “For me, it was kind of a cost benefit. Yeah, I could play one more year, but then I’m another year older in pursuing my next career. I was fortunate enough to play in the NHL and have a 13-year (professional) career. But I’m not one of those guys that would never have to work ever again. I knew that there was going to come a point in time where I was going to be starting from scratch again.

“When you look at it as a whole picture, you have to weigh the good and the bad. I was young enough, I accomplished what I accomplished, I was proud of my career, I could step away and be proud of what I had done. And at the same time, really have time to build a second career and be as successful, or more successful in that.”

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