You couldn't have written a better story for Kris Letang's return to the Pittsburgh Penguins lineup on Tuesday night.
After missing two months of the season due to a stroke, a death in the family and a lower body injury, Letang recorded four points, including the game winner, in a wild 7-6 Penguins win over the Florida Panthers.
“It's surreal,” Letang said after the game about his incredible return. “I didn't know what to think or how it was going to go. These guys have supported me for the past month and it's just great to be back.”
Letang scored the overtime winner on the powerplay to seal the victory for the Penguins, earning first star of the game honors. The contest featured five combined game-tying goals and three lead changes, but it was Letang who was able to finally break the deadlock for good.
The three-time Stanley Cup Champion sustained a lower-body injury and returned to Montreal for the death of his father, missing 11 games between the two circumstances. That was after already missing time earlier in the campaign due to a stroke suffered last year.
His first point of the night helped Pittsburgh initiate a multi-goal comeback in the first period, and his fourth marked his ninth career overtime goal.
The Penguins became the sixth team to overcome three separate deficits en route to winning in January, according to NHL.com. It was the fourth game of 2022-23 to feature two teams combining for five game-tying goals.
It was Kris Letang's 30th career game-winning goal, and it came in storybook fashion for the Montreal native.
The Penguins will be relying on him to continue playing at the level he did Tuesday as they battle for a wild-card spot in the NHL's ultra-competitive Metropolitan Division.
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