Penguins forward prospect Rutger McGroarty grateful to be healthy again

Sure, getting a goal has its obvious appeal.

But for Rutger McGroarty, there was a much more basic, primal reason to celebrate.

He was simply playing hockey again.

One of the top prospects in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ nest, McGroarty made his season debut Nov. 15 with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. It was his first game in more than seven months after a series of injuries kept the promising power forward sidelined for over half a calendar year.

“Just being in the locker room again, being on the ice, being on the bench, it’s been great,” McGroarty said by phone on Thursday. “Pretty much all I know is hockey. You never take it for granted, but once you get back, you’re just that much more grateful to be back and be in a locker room again, just being able to play hockey and play the game you love.”

There was plenty to love with how McGroarty played in that contest, a 3-1 home win against the Springfield Thunderbirds. Starting the contest on the left wing of the top line, McGroarty scored a goal with a dominant power move off the left wing.

WELCOME BACK RUTGER pic.twitter.com/2d3C3eUsk3

— Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (@WBSPenguins) November 16, 2025

“(Linemate) Aidan McDonough actually had an incredible play because he pulled up right when he got into the (offensive) zone,” McGroarty said. “I just continued with speed and he sucked in two or three defenders to him. I just had a clear lane to the net. Overall, I just like taking pucks to the net.”

After being a healthy scratch by design for a game Friday, McGroarty maintained his goal-per-game pace on Saturday by scoring the only goal in a 1-0 road win against the Providence Bruins.

His score was a wild adventure of an end-to-end short-handed tally that showcased the thoroughly complete game he has developed since turning professional last season.

END TO END SHORTY FOR RUTGER McGROARTY⛽@WBSPenguins | #WBSvsPRO pic.twitter.com/23EtorhaSl

— American Hockey League (@TheAHL) November 23, 2025

After leaving the University of Michigan in August of 2024, McGroarty signed with the Penguins (who acquired the first-round draft pick’s rights from the Winnipeg Jets via trade).

His promise led the Penguins to give him a three-game run on the NHL roster to open the 2024-25 season, but he spent the bulk of the season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton before being recalled in late March.

Primarily deployed in a top-six role upon his return, McGroarty posted three points (one goal, two assists) in five NHL contests.

“He’s been great at both ends of the ice,” Penguins forward Bryan Rust said. “You saw that at the end of (last season). He was playing both ends of the ice extremely hard, doing that well, which can sometimes be struggles for younger players. But he figured that out.”

A left foot injury suffered April 8 brought his season to a premature end. But once he was healthy, he engaged in a vigorous offseason of training at GVN Performance gym near his home in Plymouth, Mich.

“This summer was huge,” McGroarty said. “Overall, I truly think I had only two off days all summer. I work out Monday through Friday and I think there (were) only two days — Monday through Friday — for 20 weeks that I had off. I had a really good summer. I was really excited coming in. I really liked how I felt.”

What didn’t feel good was another injury before training camp opened.

McGroarty declined to offer specifics on the ailment but indicated it was a separate malady from the foot injury he suffered in April. Whatever he labored with, it was severe enough to keep him off the ice for the entirety of training camp and all of the preseason, to say nothing of the first five-plus weeks of the regular season.

Even with that much downtime, McGroarty feels the investment he made into his offseason training wasn’t lost.

“That doesn’t just go to waste,” McGroarty said. “I still know what kind of hockey player I am. I still know how big of a summer I had. It just might take a second to get that back, but overall, I know the player I am and I’m excited to get back to that form.”

Reporting to his first training camp in September of 2024, McGroarty was listed at 205 pounds. This past September, he was listed at 212 pounds.

He grew in a variety of ways during his first professional campaign.

“His game got a lot more mature,” Rust said. “Obviously, he’s always been a really good player. He’s always done really good things. But I think he knows more what his strengths are and I think he plays to those well. He figured out a way to be successful at the pro level with what makes him successful.

“You could see over the course of the year that he kind of really found out what makes him excel and he obviously works on other parts of his game. He continued to play to his strengths. You could tell he got more confident as the year went on. When young, good skill players get confidence, they tend to become very dangerous.”

It’s not quite clear when he might be a threat to return to the NHL. Given how lengthy his convalescence was, Penguins management seems leery of rushing his recovery.

“There’s no real timeline on anything,” McGroarty said. “And obviously, I have to have success here (with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton). The NHL is not something that just gets handed to you. You have to earn it. Especially here with (the Penguins), there’s so many good prospects that have done really well this season. We all enjoy playing together here (with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton). I don’t think there’s a timeline.

“I definitely know I have to earn it. I’m just grateful to be playing hockey again. It’s the game that I love and it’s the sport that I love. I enjoy just being able to play hockey.”

Note: The Penguins had a scheduled day off Sunday.