Conor Timmins’ go-to fun fact is an easy one.
“I have two different-colored eyes,” he said with a smile. “I always go back to that.”
The Penguins defenseman, acquired from Toronto at the trade deadline, recently took some time to share a few more tidbits about himself.
*He grew up in Ontario, 10 minutes from Niagara Falls. While Conor has spent the last few offseasons in Toronto, he still finds the time to go back home.
*His parents own a butcher shop called Big Red Markets. “It was great. We were pretty well-known all-around town,” Conor said with a laugh. “Always have some great meals at home – a lot of steak and chicken – so, it was awesome.” Conor’s go-to order at a steakhouse is always a ribeye, medium-rare: “pretty classic.”
*Conor is the middle of three children. His older sister works in marketing in Montreal, while his younger sister is a consultant in Toronto.
*When Conor was growing up, his father Dan owned and coached the local Junior B team, the Thorold Blackhawks. “So, I grew up basically in the rink. Started playing when I was, like four years old. Just grew up around the game. It was great,” said Conor, who loved having his dad as his coach.
“He's been in my corner, and someone I talk to about pretty much every game. I usually call him a day after a game. Let it sink in a little bit, so we can both kind of take the emotion out of it [laughs]. Then, we'll kind of go over what he thought. But yeah, I like having someone to talk to and just break down the game.”
The best advice Dan gave Conor is straight out of the Mike Sullivan playbook: “He's just been always very big on telling me to control what I can control. Obviously, I've gone through some adversity in my career, and had to fight through that. So, just focusing on the things that I can work on, like my attitude and my work ethic. Things like that.”
*Timmins has a history with Kyle Dubas. Pittsburgh’s President of Hockey Operations and GM drafted Timmins when he ran the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League. “Then, he obviously traded for me when he was in Toronto. So, I have a good relationship with Kyle,” Timmins said. “I think he values my game, and that's exciting for me as a player, to have someone believe in you like that. I'm just excited to prove him right out there.”
*After bringing Timmins to Pittsburgh, Dubas referred to the injury issues Timmins overcame early in his career. He suffered a concussion at the end of his final season in junior hockey, and missed the entire 2018-19 campaign. Timmins actually used what Sidney Crosby had gone through years earlier as a reference for himself, remembering the significance of the captain’s return on Nov. 21, 2011. “I still remember, I was at a minor hockey practice, and we had some kids on the team that were big Penguins fans, so that’s all they were talking about,” Timmins said.
*As for Conor’s NHL fandom, he loved the Maple Leafs, with Tomas Kaberle as his favorite player. “When I was growing up, he was a big player for them. I just like the way he passed the puck and he could shoot it pretty hard from the point. So yeah, I was a big fan,” Timmins said.
*When Conor isn’t at the rink, he’ll watch shows – he just started season 2 of Severance – and classic movies. “Shawshank Redemption... I love Rocky, the Rocky series. I’ll watch those all the time. I did go see the steps the first time I was there (to play the Flyers). That was pretty cool,” he said.
*Finally, the necklace Conor always wears features St. Christopher, the patron saint of travelers. “So, just kind of take him with me through my journey,” Timmins said.
