Penguins defenseman Jack St. Ivany nearing a return

Jack St. Ivany was a long shot to make the Pittsburgh Penguins roster out of training camp.

And that shot got even longer when he suffered a suspected right foot injury during a 5-3 preseason road win against the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 1.

A puck struck his skate, and that led to several weeks off the ice.

To be clear, he wasn’t just off the ice. He was off the ground, somewhat, as he was forced to don a protective boot and even had a knee scooter that elevated the damaged appendage.

The rookie defenseman shed those encumbrances last week as he began to skate in Cranberry while the team was in Sweden for a pair of games against the Nashville Predators.

“I was on (the scooter) for a handful of weeks,” St. Ivany said. “It’s one of those things that you’ve got to slowly acclimate yourself back to walking, then moving a little bit, then moving some weight, then transition on the ice. It’s definitely a little bit of a learning curve getting back to it. But I feel really good and feel really strong.”

Currently designated to the season-opening nonroster injured list, St. Ivany has furthered his recovery this week with a handful of on-ice appearances with teammates in Cranberry. Operating in a noncontact capacity, he worked out in a group setting Tuesday for the first time since being injured.

“Nice to get back on the ice,” said St. Ivany, a right-handed shot. Felt like a long time since I had seen it. … Just kind of ramping it up, return to play a little bit. Got to take baby steps.”

During his convalescence, St. Ivany did what he could in a rudimentary sense to maintain some of his ability.

During a practice session in Cranberry last month, he stood outside the rink boards and played a puck off a cinderblock wall with his stick and gloves while immobilized on his scooter.

“That’s one thing I just wanted to work on, my hands and do everything I can to hold a stick,” St. Ivany said. “Half of the battle is the mental side. You love the game; you love being out there. It’s nice when guys would be practicing, just to be stickhandling. You feel like you’re out there imagining you’re out there doing the drills.”

St. Ivany had a solid preseason. A bottom-pairing defenseman, the 26-year-old offered some stable play within that role as he appeared in four exhibition contests and recorded an assist on two shots.

“As training camp went on there, his game kept getting better and better,” coach Dan Muse said. “Just really solid, two ways. He was moving pucks well, defending well, joining at the right times. He was showing a strong two-way game.”

If his game has been strong enough to lead to steady work at the NHL level, that’s up for debate.

At the moment, the Penguins have a surplus of right-handed defensemen, including two All-Stars in Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang as well as a promising teenage rookie in Harrison Brunicke. Additionally, veteran reserves Matt Dumba and Connor Clifton have had to occasionally work the left side in some games just to get into the lineup.

If for no other reason than to get him into some games of consequence to further his recovery, St. Ivany will likely head to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League once he is fully healed.

(According to Puckpedia, St. Ivany requires waivers for a normal assignment to a minor league affiliate. A conditioning assignment would not be subject to waivers.)

Regardless of how that may unfold, St. Ivany is focused on being in the NHL at some point this season.

“I felt like I had a positive preseason,” St. Ivany said. “It’s a tough injury. There’s no good time for an injury, but I’m ready to go, and I’m mentally doing whatever I can to help this team and get us to the playoffs.”