Penguins’ Justin Brazeau one of the top underdog stories this season

The Pittsburgh Penguins earned a 7-3 road win over the Chicago Blackhawks Sunday night, with Justin Brazeau earning his first career NHL hat trick. With the win, the Penguins are now 16-12-9 with 41 points, seventh in the Metropolitan Division but just one point back of the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

As for Brazeau, the 6-foot-6 forward has 11 goals on the season, tying the career high he set in 2024-25 with the Boston Bruins and Minnesota Wild. Averaging just over 13 minutes a night, Brazeau has carved out a role for himself as a middle-six forward, and is providing Pittsburgh with plenty of value with a cap hit of $1.5 million for this year and next.

On Monday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Tyler Yaremchuk and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton discuss Brazeau’s hat trick and his role on a Penguins squad that’s looking to make a push for the playoffs.

Tyler Yaremchuk: Who is your “Man of the Holidays?”

Carter Hutton: For me, my player is Justin Brazeau. What a night for him on Sunday as he gets the hat trick. This is a player that’s undrafted at 27 who has bounced around. His career numbers have been good and he’s had a good run. With the Boston Bruins last season, he had 10 goals and 10 assists for 20 points in 57 games, and this year he’s already tied his career high in goals with 11.

Last night was a big performance for a Penguins team that needs to find a way to win hockey games. I think for Pittsburgh, going into Chicago out of the break and finding a way to beat the Blackhawks is big. As for Brazeau, he’s a big body. He started strong and I didn’t know if it was sustainable, but again, it’s fun to watch.

You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode here…