Bunting - acquired from Carolina last season as part of the Jake Guentzel trade - is becoming an impact player for Pittsburgh again after a rough start to the season
It's no secret that the beginning of the 2024-25 was a struggle for Pittsburgh Penguins forward Michael Bunting.
He came to Pittsburgh last season as part of the big trade that sent Jake Guentzel to the Carolina Hurricanes, and he registered six goals and 19 points in 21 games down the final stretch to help nearly catapult the Penguins to the playoffs.
This season? Bunting had just one point in his first 12 games, and he was even healthy scratched against the Winnipeg Jets earlier this season as a result.
However, it appears he is beginning to turn a corner. In his last seven games, Bunting has recorded three goals and five points, which is more resemblant of the Bunting the Penguins traded for at the deadline last season.
And Bunting knows what he has to do to have an impact.
"I feel like the last handful of games, I've been pretty impactful," Bunting said. "I've been playing my game. Hard on the forecheck, creating chances, and the offense is kind of starting to open up for me. I've never gone through something like this, but it's adversity. You've got to face it head-on as an athlete, and I'm looking forward to keep building on my game and continuing what makes me successful."
Head coach Mike Sullivan has stressed that Bunting is at his best when he is living in the blue paint. He has done that with a lot more ease and consistency since being put on a line with Evgeni Malkin and Bryan Rust.
Since being reunited in the third period of the Penguins' Nov. 8 game against Washington, the line has combined for five goals and 11 points in parts of five games - and that's including the dud of a loss against the Dallas Stars on Nov. 11, which no one seemed to show up for.
Their playing styles seem to mesh well together. Rust forechecks hard and drives the net, and he also has some speed and skill to boot. Malkin is the playmaker, craftsman, and primary target on the line.
As for Bunting? There is an old saying that players can create their own luck, and that may be happening in his case. He struggled to get to his gritty, hard-lined, north-south style that made him successful last season.
Playing with those players may have opened up the space for him to play that way. But, regardless, he has put in the work to get to those dirty areas and turn the bad luck that was plaguing him into good luck that helps him and the team have success.
"Yeah, I think so," Bunting said. "I think I've got to get to that spot, I've got to get to the front of the net and cause havoc, and that's where success happens for me. I've just got to stick to my game. We talked about it amongst one another as, like, 'do what makes you successful that will help the team,' and I think everyone's looking forward to doing that."
Bunting will be a key player for the Penguins, especially in this next stretch of games. Nine of the Penguins' next 10 games are against teams currently in a playoff position, and eight of those teams made the playoffs last season.
