Penguins forward prospect Max Graham signs with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton

Pittsburgh Penguins forward prospect Max Graham signed a two-year American Hockey League contract with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Tuesday.

The 21-year-old Graham (6-foot-3, 209 pounds) just completed his junior career with the Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League. Serving as captain of that team last season, Graham appeared in 34 games and scored 35 points (13 goals, 22 assists).

Max Graham with the wheels!

@Kelowna_Rockets pic.twitter.com/6Nbib7hId9

— Western Hockey League (@TheWHL) November 6, 2024

An unspecified knee injury in mid-January brought his season to a premature end.

Graham, a left-handed shot, was able to attend the Pittsburgh Penguins’ recent prospect development camp in Cranberry earlier this month but was limited to a handful of skating sessions with other players recovering from injuries prior to practice sessions.

In March, Pittsburgh Penguins president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas indicated Graham was scheduled to be recovered by the time the team’s training camp opens in September.

“Big, physical winger who this year got off to a great start, playing his best hockey,” Dubas said the day of the trade. “He had an injury that ended his season. …. We liked him. We don’t have a lot of players like that in the system that combine that size, toughness and ability.”

The Pittsburgh Penguins acquired Graham’s NHL rights in a multi-player trade with the New Jersey Devils on March 7. His NHL rights expire on June 1, 2026.

Graham was a fifth-round draft pick (No. 139) by the Devils in 2024.

Note: Paul DeFazio, a long-time equipment staffer with the Penguins organization, was hired as head equipment manager of the Columbus Blue Jackets. He had been with the Penguins in various capacities for 27 years.