Penguins A to Z: John Nyberg filled a need, but what's his future?
While the NHL is on hold because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Tribune-Review will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 54 individuals under NHL contract with the organization, from mid-level prospect Niclas Almari to high-profile trade acquisition Jason Zucker.
Player: John Nyberg
Position: Defenseman
Catches: Left
Age: 23
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 195 pounds
2019-20 AHL statistics: 35 games, 10 points (two goals, eight assists)
Contract: Final year of a three-year entry-level contract with a salary cap hit of $745,000. Pending restricted free agent this upcoming offseason.
Acquired: Trade, Jan. 17, 2020
This season: The Penguins needed some depth on the back end for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s lineup when they acquired Nyberg from the Dallas Stars in a transaction that sent once-intriguing but ultimately disappointing forward prospect Oula Palve to the Lone Star State.
At that time, injuries had ravaged blues lines for both the NHL and AHL rosters, and Nyberg was a semi-regular scratch for the AHL’s Texas Stars, who had some bloated numbers on defense.
Nyberg played in 19 of a possible 38 games with Texas during the 2019-20 season and recorded six points (two goals, four assists).
He didn’t exactly light it up once he got into Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s lineup, but the fact he was actually in the lineup far more regularly than he was with Texas was a step forward for him. Before the AHL season season shutdown in mid-March, he had dressed for 16 of a possible 23 games for the Penguins and recorded four assists.
Towards the end of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins’ season, Nyberg had settled into the left side of the second pairing with Zach Trotman while also getting some minutes on the penalty kill.
By many accounts, Nyberg offered a stable defensive-minded presence as desired with a lengthy reach thanks to his his 6-foot-3 frame. He also provided a touch of offensive acumen. Three of his four assists with the Penguins came off point shots teammates redirected for goals.
(Video courtesy Syracuse Crunch)
The future: Even though he was sixth-round draft pick (No. 165 overall) by the Dallas Stars back in 2014, Nyberg, a native of Sweden, is relatively new to North American hockey as the 2019-20 campaign was only his second full (or close to full) season on this continent.
So it’s fair to say he’s still has some development to do even if he’s approaching his mid-20s.
Re-signing Nyberg is hardly a priority for the organization, and with fellow defensemen Niclas Almari, Kevin Czuczman, Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Jon Lizotte (AHL deal), Cam Lee, Will Reilly, Trotman and David Warsofsky each under contract for 2020-21, Nyberg could run into the same problem he faced in Texas with regards to the numbers on the blue line.
That said, there appears to be a level of trust in Nyberg with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins coach and general manager Mike Vellucci, who has near-complete control on that team’s roster. And as a restricted free agent, the organization controls his signing rights.
Nyberg has the base components to be an NHL-er just with his skating and a strong shot. But he’s still very unpolished. If Nyberg has an NHL future, it will be a stretch to see him realize it any time soon.
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
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