For the second year in a row, the Pittsburgh Penguins walked away with the best record in the annual NHL Prospects Challenge in Buffalo, New York.
After defeating the Buffalo Sabres 8-5 on Monday, the team’s next generation of talent is headed back to Pittsburgh in anticipation of beginning training camp this week.
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There was a whole lot to like from the Prospects Challenge, and it’s safe to say that the Penguins have not had this much talent on the verge of being NHL-ready in quite a while.
As Pittsburgh wraps up the long weekend, they look ahead to the upcoming season. Here are five standout prospects to watch when training camp opens on Wednesday.
Rutger McGroarty
Might as well get the most obvious one out of the way.
McGroarty stood out in these games, as it was clear that he thinks the game at a higher level than pretty much all of his peers at the tournament did. He was consistently putting himself in position to make plays, and his playmaking shone through. He also played his trademark physical game and did not shy away from contact.
He finished the tournament with two goals and five points, and he was noticeable in a very good way for the Penguins. He’s arguably the top candidate to break the Penguins’ NHL roster out of training camp, and he will definitely be the one guy everyone is watching.
Tristan Broz
As good as McGroarty was, he wasn’t the best player in these games.
Nope. That honor goes to 2021 second-round pick Tristan Broz.
Broz was everywhere all weekend long. He registered three goals and seven points in three games, with four of those points coming against Buffalo on Monday. He was noticeable in all three zones, played a physical game, and developed chemistry with Ville Koivunen on the second line.
Related: NHL Prospects Challenge: Penguins’ Prospect Stands Out in Game 2 Win
Fresh off of a National Championship with Denver and signing his ELC, Broz is a longshot to make the roster out of camp. But make no mistake: He was very impressive during these three games, and there were a whole lot of Penguins’ NHL brass witnessing it.
Don’t count this guy out. If he continues his dominance into training camp and into the AHL season, it won’t be long before he gets the call.
Vasily Ponomarev
I wrote about Ponomarev at length on Saturday, but he was very good in these games. He didn’t crack the scoresheet a whole lot – he scored only one goal in the second game and registered one other assist – but his work on…