Penguins place 7 on waivers, including 2019 1st-round pick Sam Poulin
The Pittsburgh Penguins placed seven players on waivers, including forward Sam Poulin, the team’s first-round pick (No. 21 overall) in 2019.
Should those players go unclaimed by 2 p.m. Saturday, they can be assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League (AHL).
In addition to Poulin, the Penguins also waived forwards Emil Bemstrom, Jonathan Gruden and Joona Koppanen as well as defensemen Nate Clurman, Filip Kral and John Ludvig.
• Poulin is the most notable member of the septet given his draft status. The 23-year-old has skated for the Penguins organization — primarily with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton — since he turned professional in 2021-22.
Last season, he was one of that team’s leading scorers with 31 points (16 goals, 15 assists) in 41 games. He also appeared in three NHL contests and did not record a point while averaging 7:47 of ice time per contest.
This past offseason, the Penguins re-signed the left-handed Poulin (6-foot-1, 208 pounds), who was a pending restricted free agent, to a two-year two-way contract extension with a salary cap hit of $775,000.
During the ongoing preseason, Poulin has appeared in three games and has no points though he has recorded a team-leading 20 penalty minutes.
• Bemstrom, 25, joined the Penguins in February after arriving via a trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets. In 24 games with the Penguins last season, he had five points (three goals, two assists) and averaged 8:47 of ice time per contest.
This preseason, the right-handed Bemstrom (6-foot, 195 pounds) has skated in three games and has no points with six shots.
In July, the Penguins re-signed Bemstrom, a pending restricted free agent, to a one-year contract worth $775,000.
• Gruden, 24, has been with the organization for four seasons since he was acquired in October of 2020 in a trade that sent former franchise goaltender Matt Murray to the Ottawa Senators.
Primarily assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton during his tenure with the Penguins, the left-handed Gruden skated in 47 AHL games and scored 24 points (13 goals, 11 assists) last season. He also appeared in a career-high 13 NHL contests last season and scored his first career NHL goal while averaging 8:40 of ice time per contest.
This preseason, Gruden (6-foot, 172 pounds) has suited up for four contests and has one goal.
A pending restricted free agent his past offseason, Gruden re-signed with the Penguins, agreeing to a two-year, two-way contract with a salary cap hit of $775,000.
• The 26-year-old Koppanen is entering his second season with the Penguins after signing a two-year contract with the team in the 2023 offseason. The second year of his contract is one-way and carries a salary cap hit of $775,000.
A left-handed shot, Koppanen (6-5, 216 pounds) spent most of the 2023-24 campaign with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, skating in 58 games and posting 21 points (six goals, 15 assists). He also appeared in four NHL contests and did not record a point while clocking an average of 7:49 of ice time per game.
Koppanen has one assist in two games this preseason.
• Clurman, 26, joined the team as an unrestricted free agent signing this past offseason, agreeing to a one-year, two-way contract with a salary cap hit of $775,000.
Last season, the right-hander played in 37 games for the AHL’s Colorado Eagles and scored five points (one goal, four assists). This preseason, Clurman (6-2, 205 pounds) has appeared in three games and has no points with three shots.
• Kral, 24, also joined the Penguins as an unrestricted free agent this past offseason, signing a one-year, two-way contract with a salary cap hit of $775,000.
The Czechia native spent the entire 2023-24 season with the Lahti Pelicans of Finland’s Liiga and in 46 games, Kral (6-2, 198 pounds) scored 37 points (five goals, 32 assists).
In two games this preseason, Kral, a left-hander, has no points.
• Ludvig, 24, made his NHL debut with the Penguins last season after they claimed him off waivers from the Florida Panthers in October. Emerging as one of the team’s more physical entities, the left-handed Ludvig played in 33 NHL games and scored five points (three goals, two assists) while accruing 47 penalty minutes.
He also skated in four games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and did not record a point.
This preseason, Ludvig (6-1, 213 pounds) has suited up for three games and has no points with eight penalty minutes.
He is entering the final year of a two-year contract with a salary cap hit of $775,000.
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.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.