1KRIS: Letang Earns Praise From the Hockey World
Sidney Crosby: We've spent a lot of time together. He's kind of taken a long road to a thousand. He's been through a lot, and obviously, he's had to battle through a number of injuries. His game itself, it's a pretty tough game that he plays. So a thousand is probably more than that, given the way he plays and the amount of time he plays. It's quite the accomplishment. It's a milestone for anybody, but for sure, the way he plays the game - that's a lot of hockey.
Evgeni Malkin: He can do everything. He is like, a warrior. He plays like 25 minutes every night. He never gives up. He does everything. Blocking shots, power play, nice teammate. He's good in the locker room. He has lots of injuries, but he's always back, and always back strong. He's a good teammate. He's a good friend. I think he's a great father, great dad with his kids. He's stayed here 17 years, he does lots of things for the team, for young guys, and we all love him. This year has been really tough for him, but we try to support, and we see he's back, like a couple OT goals. I like when he smiles, for sure.
Bryan Rust: His physical fitness as a player is so off the charts. It's crazy. He's kind of just one of those freak athlete guys who's in really good shape all the time. You can see on the ice, he can kind of just skate forever. As a teammate, he's a little bit of a jokester, likes to have fun, and he's super passionate. He's dealt with a lot of stuff this year. Most people would kind of crumble or take a step back or not be performing as well. You can see him and he has such a high character level, such a high care level, that he's still coming to the rink and he's still doing awesome here and playing great for us and doing some incredible things. So, to be able to kind of balance the things that have happened off the ice with being able to come here, do his job, and be a great hockey player - it's been very impressive.
Jake Guentzel: What makes him so special is just how hard working he is. Kind of seems like he does everything on the ice for us. Plays in all situations and play ton of minutes. So just a guy that does it all and seems to bring it every night.
Marc-Andre Fleury: I think it shows a lot about his character, the way that he's battled through all this time. To not only get 1,000 games, but to do it while suffering two strokes, the neck surgery, too. He plays a tough game out there, and credit goes to him for fighting his way and wanting to help his team during all this time, and still to this day. It was a pleasure to play with him for so many years. I'm glad I got to know him and see him grow as a as a player, but as a human, too. I think he's a great guy to have in the locker room, and now a dad, too, and all of that.
Max Talbot: He's a very strong dude. You look at a perfect skater in Kris Letang. The way that he could always take chances and come back and play with such confidence, what a great player (laughs). I love Kris. He's a guy that has grown so much from his first year to now. Yes, we're talking on the ice, the great career and player he became. But especially off the ice, just being such a great teammate for this team, and standing up in pressure situations, scoring big goals for this franchise, and also being becoming the leader that he became is pretty great to see. He developed into that. It was not something that necessarily he had the first year, it took him years. That's what's so beautiful about this, is the growth into his personality and the way that he conducts himself in the room to become the amazing leader and teammate he is now.
David Perron: He's one of the most dedicated guys I know. He just wants to have success. From the moment I knew him in junior to now, he hasn't stopped. Whatever he had to overcome, he did. I don't know if people around the league give him enough credit for how hard he works on the ice. You guys have all seen him play all these games, and you know how hard he works defensively. But for years, he was kind of viewed as a pure offensive D-man. And I always had these battles, in all the locker rooms I've been in - even more after playing with him - (where) I would rank him in the top department in the NHL in every aspect. I think he's gonna surprise people, he's gonna keep having some good years.
Cale Makar: I was watching him so much growing up, and he's such an incredible, incredible player. Fortunately got to meet him at a BioSteel camp a couple of years ago. You can tell he thinks the game really well. At that camp, that was kind of the first time I'd been on the ice with him. Just watching him and Sid move the puck and the chemistry that they have together was pretty crazy. Him as a player, obviously he went through some tough moments this year. Glad to hear he's back and doing well now. His longevity has been really impressive, too.
Erik Karlsson: He's been through some adversity in his career. He also has three Cups. I'm a little bit jealous of that (laughs). He's a guy that persevered for a long time, been in the league through various stages of how the game is played and always been able to adapt and be successful. So, hats off to him on that front.
Seth Jones: I have a lot of respect for Kris. I've actually met Kris a couple of times. I've played a couple All-Star Games with him. He's a great guy to be around in the room. He's just a very respected guy throughout the league. Not only for his on-ice play, but he's such a good guy off the ice. You have to respect someone like that. Very family-oriented guy. There's not a lot he hasn't done in this league.
Paul Coffey: His skating, his competitiveness, his talent all obviously stick out. But he competes out there. He's not a big guy. Competes hard. For the most part, it's a tough position to play. It's harder to play well every night, but it looks like he gives his all every time he's on the ice. He's nice to watch. He's a Stanley Cup champion. I think he loves the city, which is great. The city loves him. As for breaking my records, records are made to be broken, and if they're going to be broken, it takes a great player. That's what Kris is all about.
Mike Sullivan: He's in elite company. To play 1,000 games for the same team, I think in and of itself is a great accomplishment. Anyone that plays a thousand games in this league, I think it speaks volumes to their dedication and commitment to being the best player they can be, and just the sheer fitness that it takes to play at an elite level for that long. You look at what Tanger has gone through over the course of his career, from an injury standpoint, health standpoint - what he's had to continue to play through and endure in order to continue to play in this league - to accumulate that amount of games is impressive. I think it just speaks volumes to his commitment to his game and his passion to play the sport. He loves hockey, he loves being around it. As you guys know, we got to drag him off the ice every day, it seems. That's the type of person, that's the type of player that he is. It's an incredible milestone. He's in elite company, and he's certainly a guy that's deserving of recognition for that.
