The Penguins have freed up a pair of spots on their active roster in advance of Monday’s game against Philadelphia. The team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve assigned forwards Tristan Broz and Danton Heinen to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
Broz was recalled back on Monday to get his first taste of NHL action. He made one appearance, recording two shots on goal in 11:30 of playing time on Wednesday against Buffalo. The 23-year-old has been productive in the minors, however, collecting eight goals and five assists in 18 games, putting him a little ahead of his offensive pace from last season when he notched 19 goals and 18 helpers in 59 outings with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
As for Heinen, he’s in his second season with the team after being acquired from Vancouver back in February. He cleared waivers back in training camp and did quite well in the minors, picking up 10 goals and five assists in 14 games. That earned him a recall four weeks ago. Heinen played in nine games but was limited to just one assist. Had he played in one more game or been up for three more days, he’d have needed to pass through waivers unclaimed again to return to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Accordingly, it’s not too surprising they’ve decided to send him down to ensure he’ll remain available for recall later in the season.
As a result of these moves, Pittsburgh only has 11 healthy forwards on their active roster. That suggests that there is a recall or two coming on Monday – perhaps winger Rutger McGroarty – or one or more forwards are ready to come off injured reserve. At the moment, four forwards are on IR for the Penguins – Noel Acciari, Justin Brazeau, Filip Hallander, and Rickard Rakell. The first two have been skating and could be candidates to be activated.