As the Penguins draw closer to the end of Week 1 in training camp, there are a few players and storylines beginning to distinguish themselves.
On Friday, Team 1 routed Team 3 in a scrimmage, 6-1, and Team 2 continued to impress during practice afterwards.
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There are some guys who are making early cases for an NHL roster spot, and there are some other storylines to keep an eye on as Pittsburgh heads to Buffalo on Saturday for their preseason opener.
Some observations and notes from Day 3:
– The Team 1 v. Team 3 scrimmage was an absolute massacre by Team 1. They scored three goals in, probably, about a minute and a half. I couldn’t even finish my tweet about it.
This comes as no surprise, but there is a lot of talent on Team 1. This was a bit of a rough day for Sergei Murashov, especially the three goals in about 0.5 seconds. But the only one that was really a cheapie from Murashov was when he played the puck right to Jesse Puljujarvi, who buried it.
John Ludvig, Rutger McGroarty, Bryan Rust, Tanner Howe, and Puljujarvi (2) were the goal-scorers for Team 1. Defensive prospect Scooter Brickey was the lone goal-scorer for Team 3.
Related: Penguins Training Camp: Notes from Day 2
– Speaking of Puljujarvi, he had a strong day today. Not only did he score two goals in the scrimmage, but his skating looked good, and he was forechecking hard.
The first two days of camp were a bit of a mess for him, so let’s see if the work he put in today will spark something for the rest of camp.
– There are three guys who have really impressed me so far in camp. I mentioned Sam Poulin, and I’ll get back to Vasily Ponomarev in a minute.
But one guy who has surprised in a really good way so far is Czech defenseman Filip Kral. He signed as a free agent early in the summer, and – to be honest – he wasn’t really on my radar.
However, Kral has gotten my attention, and likely, the attention of the coaching staff as well. He’s been everywhere on the ice. He has good offensive instincts, can shoot the puck, and has turned in some good defensive work against some of the Penguins’ top players.
Keep an eye on this guy. Those sixth and seventh defensive spots seem like they’re pretty much entirely up for grabs.
– We have discussed Ponomarev at length on here. But if his first three days of camp are any indication of the type of player the Penguins will be getting at the NHL level, it’s going to be very difficult to cut him from this roster.
He was – by far…