April 1: Bemstrom cleared waivers, Friedman reports. It’s unclear whether the Pens plan to immediately assign him to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton or purely open up roster flexibility.
March 31: The Pittsburgh Penguins have placed depth winger Emil Bemstrom on waivers per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Bemstrom served a fourth-line role in Pittsburgh’s last three games and didn’t manage any notable stat changes other than one shot on net.
Bemstrom has spent the bulk of his season with the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins – intercut by routine trips to support Pittsburgh’s bottom six. He’s recorded one assist, no penalties, and an even-plus minus through 13 NHL appearances this year while averaging just over eight minutes in ice time. Bemstrom’s looked far more comfortable in the minors, where he has 21 goals and 46 points in 43 games on the season. Those marks lead the AHL Penguins in goals and points on a per-game basis. They also make Bemstrom one of just 15 remaining AHL skaters scoring above a point-per-game pace in more than 20 games.
Bemstrom has adjusted well to the Penguins minor league ranks after spending the bulk of the last five seasons fighting for a role in the NHL. He made his NHL debut with the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2019-20 season and recorded 20 points, split evenly, in 56 games as a rookie. He followed that foundational performance with a brief stint in Finland’s Liiga during the 2020-21 season, where he managed an encouraging 17 points in 16 games. But Bemstrom couldn’t hold onto that scoring when he returned to the NHL, with just five points in 20 games through the end of the year. He worked his way to a career-high 22 points in the 2022-23 campaign – but hasn’t been able to maintain the scoring across a full season. It seems Bemstrom has fallen firmly into the rut of top-end AHL scoring and minimal NHL scoring – and Pittsburgh will now take the step needed to reassign him to the minor leagues.
This news comes quickly after Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s leading scorer, top prospect Ville Koivunen, made his NHL debut. Koivunen didn’t manage any scoring in his first shot at Pittsburgh’s lineup, but he could hang onto the mantle of bottom-six minutes as the Penguins approach their final seven games well outside of playoff contention.
It’s important to note that, should Bemstrom be claimed on waivers, he would not be able to return to an NHL roster. Post Trade Deadline roster rules would instead force his new team to assign Bemstrom to their minor leagues.