WASHINGTON _ Matt Cullen's kids weren't impressed.
Cullen awoke in Pittsburgh on Thursday morning and caught a flight to some place called the White House in Washington, D.C., he explained to his hockey-playing boys.
"They said, 'Oh, you're going to the White House. Good. See you tonight,' " Cullen recalled. "You know how kids are. They have hockey practice, so they were more into that.
"Down the road, it's something they'll appreciate more."
Cullen's boys were among the only ones not impressed with Thursday's proceedings, as President Barack Obama welcomed the Penguins to the White House for a Stanley Cup celebration.
Players routinely used words like "unique" and "special" to describe the visit.
All, of course, were honored.
"It's one of the perks of winning the Stanley Cup," Sidney Crosby said. "You think of winning, you think of the initial celebration, that kind of thing. To be able to do this is pretty unique. I think everyone had a lot of fun."
Crosby definitely did. You won't find a professional athlete more into history than Crosby, and his respect for his surroundings was glaringly obvious midway through Obama's remarks.
As Obama listed Crosby's many accomplishments, Crosby watched intently, nodded and said, "Thank you, Mr. President," clearly humbled.
The entire event carried with it a humorous tone. Obama opened with a joke about Phil Kessel _ gold if you're looking to get a laugh out of anyone associated with the Penguins.
"Phil Kessel's still a Stanley Cup champion," Obama said. Laugher ensued.
Other bits of humor:
_Obama making note of the eight Stanley Cup winners he's feted being American-based teams, something he said he's brought up to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
_The obligatory Blackhawks reference, like Doc Emrick and the Penguins on NBC. Obama was describing Sullivan's start to the 2015-16 season in the minors, a year after working in the Blackhawks' player development department.
"(General manager Jim Rutherford) was smart enough to see that Sullivan had coached in the Blackhawks organization," Obama said. "So he knew. He knew Sullivan brought a lot to the table."
_About midway through, a baby in the corner began crying. Obama kept the laughter coming.
"Don't worry. I don't have any more bad jokes," Obama said. "These are so corny, I know."
_When the group posed for the obligatory photo, Obama shoved the podium aside and insisted on the Stanley Cup, a mini-replica the Penguins presented him with and his Pittsburgh Gold No. 44 Obama jersey all getting in the shot.
"I want the whole thing," Obama said. "I only get to do this for four more months."
In between the laughs, though, visiting White House and meeting the president was not something this group took lightly.
"You don't wake up too many days and have an opportunity to interact with the president of the United States," Sullivan said. "I think it was a lot of fun for a lot of us to be a part of it. This is my first experience being at the White House. To have the opportunity to see the history that the White House entails, the portraits on the wall, it's a really unique experience for us. I guess that's one of the privileges when you win the Stanley Cup."
