Bonino, Bonino, Bonino! Becomes Penguins Assistant Coach

One of the key pieces of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2016 and 2017 is returning to the organization for a third time, but not as a player. Former Penguins center Nick Bonino announced via social media video that he has ended his playing career and is joining the Penguins coaching staff with new head coach Dan Muse.

The Penguins officially hired Muse as the organization’s 23rd head coach on June 4, replacing Mike Sullivan, who was with the organization for nearly 10 years.

Bonino didn’t specify the nature of the position or if it will be as one of the two primary bench assistants, but the well-liked pivot who once centered the famous HBK line with Phil Kessel and Carl Hagelin is headed back to Pittsburgh.

Nick Bonino himself confirms he is joining Dan Muse’s coaching staff as an assistant coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins!

Welcome home bones! pic.twitter.com/2QYRWBszEw

— Scott Crowell (@scottcrowell18) June 18, 2025

Bonino played this season in the Slovenian league after playing for the New York Rangers in 2023-24. He finished his 15-year NHL career with 868 NHL games played, 159 goals, and 359 points. He earned two Stanley Cups and began his playing career after being a sixth-round draft choice by the San Jose Sharks in 2007.

Of course, Bonino became famous during the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs when Punjabi play-by-play broadcaster Harnarayan Singh unleashed his now-famous goal call, “Bonino, Bonino, Nick Booniiiinnnnooo!”

Bonino played parts of three seasons with the Penguins from 2015-17 and three games at the end of the 2022-23 season. In total, he scored 27 goals and 66 points in 146 games. He signed with Nashville as a free agent in July 2017.

“I had a really unique opportunity come up to coach the Pittsburgh Penguins, something we thought was the best move for our family at this time,” said Bonino in the video. “It was a tough decision because we had an absolute blast in Ljubljana.”

Bonino’s team won the Slovenian league championship.