Penguins forward prospect Kasper Bjorkqvist signed with Karpat of Finland’s Liiga.

The transaction was announced by Karpat via release on Tuesday.

As far as his NHL status is concerned, Bjorkqvist is scheduled to become a restricted free agent July 13 and the Penguins could extend a qualifying offer simply to retain his NHL rights.

That said, the likelihood of him returning to the Penguins appears to be slim.

A second-round pick (No. 61 overall) in 2016, Bjorkqvist made his NHL debut during the 2021-22 season. Appearing in six NHL contests, he scored one goal.

A native of Finland, the 24-year-old Bjorkqvist has spent most of his time as a professional in North America with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League. Last season, he appeared in 54 AHL games and scored 12 points (eight goals, four assists).

In the translated release from Karpat announcing his signing, Bjorkqvist expressed dissatisfaction over his time with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

“I am not happy with my time at AHL,” Bjorkqvist said. “Even though I was able to do things that made me promoted to the NHL, my game was still not as good there as I would have liked. I feel like I’m a more versatile player than I could be there.”

As recently as last month, Penguins general manager Ron Hextall suggested Bjorkqvist could be a candidate to claim a spot on the NHL roster out of training camp going into the 2022-23 season.

Bjorkqvist is the only member of the Penguins’ 2016 draft class who has played for the team.

• Goaltender Filip Gustavsson (second round — No. 55 overall) was traded to the Ottawa Senators in 2018 as part of an ill-fated transaction that allowed the Penguins to acquire ineffective veteran forward Derick Brassard.

• Defensemen Connor Hall (third round — No. 77 overall), Ryan Jones (fourth round — No. 121 overall) and Joe Masonius (sixth round — No. 181 overall) never signed with the Penguins.

• Defenseman Niclas Almari (fifth round — No. 151 overall) just recently completed the third year of his entry-level contract and signed with Luuko, also of the Liiga, earlier this month.

Follow the Penguins all season long.

Copyright ©2025— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)