Penguins matchup: Bryan Rust vs. Tom Kuhnhackl

A look at a key matchup in the first-round playoff series between the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Islanders.

Before almost every game of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 2016 Stanley Cup run, home or road, a ruckus would break out in the vicinity of the team’s locker room.

It was Bryan Rust and Tom Kuhnhackl playing a shockingly competitive match of pregame soccer.

“It’s kind of become a heated rivalry,” Rust said at the time. “Him being the Euro, he’s, obviously, got quite the leg up on me. I give it my all out there. But it’s just a fun way to loosen up, both physically and mentally.”

Now, the pair of close friends will be on opposite sides of a first-round playoff series between the Penguins and New York Islanders that begins Wednesday night.

Kuhnhackl left the Penguins in free agency in July. He was a restricted free agent coming into the offseason, but the team didn’t make him a qualifying offer and subsequent negotiations aimed at working out a separate deal didn’t come together.

It hasn’t been a smooth season for Kuhnhackl, who has been in and out of the Islanders lineup. He had four goals and nine points in 36 games. That could change in the playoffs, however. With the team’s other three lines showing some chemistry, the only unit in flux is the second line. Kuhnhackl is a candidate to slot in with Brock Nelson and Josh Bailey.

Rust has emerged as an important contributor for the Penguins, especially in the second half of this season. He looks destined to play a top-six role in the playoffs, whether on a line with Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin.