Penguins prospect Harrison Brunicke: 'My goal is to be here'

Defensive prospects Owen Pickering and Harrison Brunicke have been roommates in their temporary residence during the Pittsburgh Penguins’ ongoing training camp.

Though the 21-year-old Pickering has a specific way of outlining his living arrangements with Brunicke, 19.

“He’s not that much younger than me,” Pickering said. “But it is my room, for sure. He’s a guest in my room.

“Right, ‘Bruno?’ ”

“You’re giving fake news to the media,” retorted Brunicke as an amused reporter watched the Statler and Waldorf routine unfold in one of the cramped auxiliary dressing rooms Wednesday at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry.

One matter that has been true about Brunicke is that this preseason, he has offered a level of play worthy of an NHL roster spot to open the regular season.

Through three games, the right-hander has one assist and eight shots.

“Just taking it day by day here,” said Brunicke, a second-round draft pick (No. 44 overall) in 2024. “You never know what’s going to happen.”

What will happen with the Penguins’ blue line leading up to the NHL’s deadline to submit a season-opening roster Monday is anyone’s guess.

The Penguins have managed to amass arguably the world’s finest collection of veteran right-handed defensemen over the age of 30 who all make more than $3 million a season in Kris Letang, Erik Karlsson, Connor Clifton and Mathew Dumba.

And another right-hander, 26-year-old Jack St. Ivany, offered a strong case to be in the NHL throughout the preseason before he suffered an undisclosed injury during a 5-3 road win against the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday. On Thursday, the team announced St. Ivany would be sidelined a minimum of six weeks.

Moving any of those players off the roster isn’t impossible, but it would come with some level of inconvenience, be it through a trade, waivers or some other avenue.

As for Brunicke, given his age, he simply can be assigned to his junior team, the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League, for the duration of that team’s season with minimal pain.

The Penguins can keep Brunicke (6-foot-3, 201 pounds) on the NHL roster to open the season for at least nine games before the first year of his three-year pact formally begins. But even then, he could wind up back in Kamloops before Game 10.

That would not appear to be Brunicke’s preference.

“Plan A is to be here,” said Brunicke, who signed an entry-level contract in June 2024. “There’s not really a Plan B in my mind right now. That’s my goal is to be here. I’m going to do whatever I can to make that happen.

“I’m focused on that.”

Brunicke got his first taste of the professional game this past spring. After Kamloops’ season came to a conclusion in late March, he was assigned to the American Hockey League’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for the remainder of that team’s season (a transaction that did not activate his entry-level contract).

The adjustment was not automatic for Brunicke, who wound up taking 18 penalty minutes in only 10 AHL regular season games (while recording a mere two assists).

“It started with bad junior habits that I brought over to (Wilkes-Barre/Scranton),” Brunicks said. “I’ve kind of translated to more of a pro game, keeping it more simple.

“You can’t hold onto the puck as long as you think you can. And one bad mistake ends up in the back of your net most of the time. Try to limit those bad habits. The things that I was doing in juniors, I can’t really do the same thing here.”

By the playoffs, Brunicke appeared to make a course correction and recorded two points (one goal, one assist) in two contests before Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was eliminated.

Bruno with an absolute SNIPEEE pic.twitter.com/IxuZ3gHR81

— Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (@WBSPenguins) April 26, 2025

“Guys are bigger, faster, stronger,” Brunicke said. “You’ve got to be more detailed with your stick and the way you’re defending. Those games kind of taught me to limit those things and get better at those stick details.”

His roommate/foil dealt with similar growing pains when he joined Wilkes-Barre/Scranton as well.

“He’s, I think, just gotten more comfortable,” said Pickering, a first-round draft pick (No. 21 overall) in 2022. “It’s a tough transition going from junior to pro. Probably the hardest jump in hockey that I’ve ever experienced. He came in and did well for us, which is really impressive. Just learning the pro game and understanding what’s expected of him, he’s grasped that pretty quickly.

“That can be difficult sometimes. But I feel like we kind of help each other with that.”

Brunicke and Pickering — who played his junior hockey in the WHL as well with the Swift Current Broncos — have been paired with one another for the bulk of training camp as well as most of the preseason. While they were split up for Wednesday’s game, they have been virtually arc-welded together at the hip for the past few weeks, on and off the ice.

“We’ve built such a good relationship,” Brunicke said. “That chemistry piece, too, on and off the ice, it’s so fun to play with him. He’s an even better friend.”

Pickering is satisfied with the union as well.

“It’s fun to play with him,” Pickering said. “Hopefully, we can play together for a long time.”

That time might not be here just yet, given the Penguins’ immediate roster concerns. But Brunicke has offered evidence he is ready for the NHL.

“There’s lots of expectations,” Brunicke said. “The big thing is, obviously, having a career in the NHL playing as long as I can. But I’m just really focused on each day and being detailed. … Just focus on what’s next.”