Penguins' Nick Bonino adjusts to a new role as coach

Like a lot of members of the workforce, Nick Bonino is having to adjust to a new gig in this economy.

And the transition hasn’t been completely smooth as he has had to develop a few new skills.

“I had to learn the computer for two hours yesterday,” Bonino bemoaned on Thursday. “I was slowing everyone down, just (learning) how to clip video and stuff.”

Given how cerebral and pensive Bonino was as a defensive center during his playing career, his onboarding process as a new assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins should be a quick process.

The process of deciding to make the transition from active player to coach was pretty quick as well.

As recently as April 27, the 37-year-old had signed a contract extension with HK Olimpija Ljubljana, a Slovenian squad that competes in the International Central European Hockey League (ICEHL).

Then by June 18, he abruptly announced his retirement as a player, explaining the Penguins — the team he won two Stanley Cup titles with in 2016 and 2017 — had offered him a coaching gig.

“It (playing in Slovenia) was amazing for the family, but I think when this all came about, it’s just an amazing opportunity,” Bonino said during the first day of the Penguins’ prospect development camp in Cranberry. “It’s something that I’ve always thought was a next step. For it to materialize like that after speaking with (head coach Dan Muse) and my wife (Lauren), it just felt like the right step and good for us and the family.”

Muse, whom the Penguins hired June 4, was the primary factor in Bonino’s career change.

Bonino had played for Muse when the latter was an assistant coach with the Nashville Predators and New York Rangers.

“(Muse) and I would always talk and a few times, he said to me, ‘If I get a (head) coaching job, I’m going to give you a call,’” Bonino said. “To his credit, he meant it and gave me a call that first day. When he called, as I was actually saying hi to him, I was bringing up the (Penguins’ Instagram account) because I was wondering if he got this job. And he did. … Had some good talks with him and here we are.”

Bonino is here in a place where he enjoyed his greatest — or at least, most celebrated — success.

As center of the famed “HBK Line” — he skated with wingers Carl Hagelin and Phil Kessel — Bonino was a vital component of back-to-back championships. That, combined with a wry social media presence, allowed Bonino (AKA “Bones”) to become a fan favorite in Pittsburgh.

“It means a lot,” Bonino said. “I think it makes it a little bit easier coming back. We went through our roster evaluation yesterday. If this was another team that I was coaching, I wouldn’t have been able to speak as much as I did. I think that makes it a little easier on Day 1.

“It really feels good to be here.”

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Nick Bonino was a member of the Penguins as a center for parts of three seasons.

Bonino will work on the bench, wearing a headset and communicating with fellow assistant coach Rich Clune (who will be positioned in the press box). Areas of focus for Bonino will be faceoff strategies and the penalty kill along with assistant Mike Stothers.

Given how new he is to this vocation, he’ll be serving as something of an apprentice to start off.

“There’s an emphasis on everyone working together,” Bonino said. “That’s a real strength of our staff. We all come from different backgrounds and have different experiences playing and coaching. That’s invaluable. Obviously, I have a lot to learn when it comes to the day-to-day (operations). But a lot of post-practice, pre-practice stuff with the guys, working with centers, all that stuff. I’m excited for it.”

Of course, the Penguins have a few centers Bonino is already familiar with in former teammates Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.

Others on the roster who shared a dressing room with Bonino include defensemen Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang as well as forward Bryan Rust and goaltender Tristan Jarry.

“I called Sid right away,” Bonino said. “In typical Sid fashion, we’re right down to business and he wants to know how the year’s going to be. And I love that. I’m really excited to work with him, obviously, and with everyone. … I talked to (Letang and Karlsson). Still tracking down (Malkin). It’s exciting.

“I was real excited to talk to (Rust). He had a great year last year. And (Jarry), too. I’m near (Jarry) in the summer and his first thing was that ‘you can’t shoot on me anymore.’ I told him, ‘I’ll be shooting on you all year.’”

Bonino is aiming to make the rebuilding Penguins — who haven’t qualified for the postseason in three years — contenders once again.

“Everyone knows what it takes to win,” Bonino said. “At some level, everyone’s won something for the most part. As we go on here — we’ve only met for two days — but I think we all have the same idea that we want to get to a place like (the Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers are) at right now and teams that have won and that we used to be. That’s the goal.”