While the Pittsburgh Penguins are out on the golf course, there is still plenty of meaningful hockey being played within the organization.
Down in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, home of the club’s American Hockey League affiliate, the WBS Penguins are gearing up for a playoff run. The team will play a three game opening series against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (AHL affiliate to Philadelphia) starting tomorrow, Wednesday the 24th.
The team finished the 72-game regular season with a record of 39-24-9 (87 points) good for third in their Atlantic Division. That included a late season surge that saw them go 8-2 down the stretch.
While the WBS Penguins have shown they can hold their own, even as the parent club in Pittsburgh has routinely plucked out top level talent for NHL gigs, the AHL team is getting a new wave of reinforcements on their playoff push.
This is a relatively common practice in the AHL. NHL teams that did not qualify for the playoffs can send down players on two-way deals to help them continue to get playing time. In addition, teams who have prospects playing in European/junior leagues whose seasons may have wrapped up can bring in those kids to help them get professional experience.
Such is the case with Pittsburgh. Prospects Owen Pickering, Ville Koivunen, Emil Pieniniemi, and Cooper Foster are all joining the AHL team ahead of the playoffs.
Owen Pickering, the team’s first round pick from 2022, will help lead the charge on the blue line for the Penguins. The 20-year old defenseman has little pro experience, but he did play 8 AHL games last season for the Penguins after his juniors season wrapped up.
A larger look at Pickering has come from his play with the Swift Current Broncos, where he has shown to be a good puck moving defenseman. Kyle Dubas named him as someone he expects to see push for an NHL job next season.
Pickering is probably the biggest name on this list, but the others here also bring tons of talent with them
That is definitely the case for Ville Koivunen, who I am personally very excited for. Koivunen came over as part of the Jake Guentzel trade, and his performance over in Europe has been very impressive this season.
Koivunen was just under a point per game for Kärpät in the Finnish Liiga. He finished with 56 points in 59 games, and from Christmas on to the end of the season, nobody recorded more points in the league than him.
For a 20-year old playing in fully adult top league in Finland, that is very impressive. He’s noted for having great hockey sense and terrific hands, and he’s had the production to back those theories up.
Koivunen was a second round pick by the Hurricanes in 2021, and his NHL trajectory might be rather soon.
Koivunen also joins the AHL with incredibly recent playoff experience, recording 13 points in 12 playoff games for Kärpät.
And speaking of Kärpät, Koivunen’s teammate in Emil Pieniniemi will also be coming over to North America. Pieniniemi was a third round pick by the Penguins last summer, and the defenseman will also be getting his first AHL action.
Pieniniemi played 38 games for Kärpät this season, registering 6 points. He also appeared in 10 playoff games.
Defenseman almost always take longer to develop than forwards, and given that Pieniniemi is still only 19, it’s probably a while before we see him in the NHL, should he get that far. But getting him reps in this kind of environment is always important, and it will be interesting to see where he figures into things.
Lastly, Cooper Foster is making his way over as well. Kyle Dubas just can’t get enough of guys with some sort of Sault Ste. Marie connection.
Foster was born there, but has played two seasons in the OHL for the Ottawa 67s. His draft year wasn’t all that impressive, with 36 points in 63 games, but this season he turned it around, increasing that total to 52 points in 59 games.
The Penguins selected the 18-year old last summer as a sixth round pick, and he is the only player on this list that is currently on the team’s Reserve List, meaning the Penguins own his NHL rights, but he does not currently have a contract.
(Featured photo of Ville Koivunen by Andy Devlin/Getty Images)
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