The Pittsburgh Penguins‘ organizational history has a plethora of great players, and we’ve decided to go through the best Penguins’ players to wear each jersey number. Today, we continue the list by naming the best #76 in Penguins’ history.
Only two players in franchise history have worn #76, and forward Valtteri Puustinen wore the number for only one game during the 2021-22 season. So, that leaves one, and he didn’t wear the number for his entire Penguins’ tenure, either – but the sample size was a bit larger, and he ended up having a pretty decent NHL career.
The best #76 in Penguins’ history is Richard Park.
© Dennis Wierzbicki – Imagn Images
Park actually had two tenures with the Penguins, and – ironically – he started and ended his NHL career in Pittsburgh.
He was selected 50th overall by the Penguins in the second round of the 1994 NHL Entry Draft, and he was only the second Korean-born player to play in an NHL game – the other being Jim Paek, also drafted by Pittsburgh. He made his debut during the 1994-95 season, appearing in just one game and registering an assist. Park played for the majority of the 1995-96 season, putting up four goals and 10 points over 56 games in a fourth-line role.
His next several seasons included split time between the AHL and NHL – as well as new homes with new teams. His best seasons came with the Minnesota Wild, Vancouver Canucks, and New York Islanders, when he put up a combined 90 goals and 212 points in 593 games.
Park spent a season in the Swiss league after his 2009-10 season with the Islanders, and then, he returned to Pittsburgh for his second stint in 2011-12. He registered seven goals and 14 points in 54 games – and that was the final season of his NHL career.
Over the course of his 14-season NHL career, Park recorded 102 goals and 241 points in 738 games.
