Jake Guentzel was a key piece to the Pittsburgh Penguins' success in recent years. At the trade deadline, he was shipped off to Carolina. Now he has spoken ahead of his return to Pittsburgh.
As the season begins to wrap up Jake Guentzel has one date circled on his calendar. Tomorrow March 26th Jake Guentzel and the Carolina Hurricanes will head to Pittsburgh where he will face his old team.
Jake Guentzel addresses his return to Pittsburgh
Ahead of tomorrow's game Jake Guentzel spoke to the media and was asked about returning to Pittsburgh for the first time. In his answer, he confirmed that he is excited to be back and will see his family while he is in town.
"It's obviously really exciting," Guentzel told reporters after practice in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Monday. "Family is still there so I'll get to see them tonight. It'll be nice to see some of the guys. But it's just going to be a fun game and hopefully get the two points."
Beyond a homecoming for the former Penguins star this game is still incredibly important for his new team the Carolina Hurricanes. Currently, the Hurricanes sit just one point behind the New York Rangers for first in their division.
If the Hurricanes can pull off a win they put themselves in a great position to control their destiny in the last 9 games of the season. All eyes will be on Jake Guentzel and the Pittsburgh crowd to see if he gets a warm or hostile reaction on Tuesday night.