Penguins prospect Sam Poulin, happy and healthy, trusting in developmental process

From the outside looking in, Pittsburgh Penguins forward prospect Sam Poulin has had to deal with some challenging hiccups this year with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League.

No call-ups to Pittsburgh have been forthcoming for Poulin, who turned 23 in late February.

Additionally, injuries have kept him off the ice for a sizable chunk of the AHL season, with Poulin limited to 33 of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s 60 games heading into Friday.

However, Poulin offered a different review of his season when his club stopped by the Penguins’ Cranberry practice facility en route to back-to-back games at the Cleveland Monsters on March 17-18.

“Honestly, I think it’s my best pro year so far,” he said. “I think I play really consistent, too. Every game, I feel like I bring something to the team and help the team win in a way. Sometimes it’ll be more defensively. Sometimes it’ll be offensively. It doesn’t matter to me, as long as the team wins and I can help the team win.”

When healthy, Poulin has been one of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s better performers, contributing 13 goals and 13 assists.

While his aim certainly is to make it to the NHL and stay there, Poulin recognizes the benefit of his current situation in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, where he factors in on the first and second lines.

WBS on a power play, and now getting a penalty shot as Phantoms' goalie Parker Gahagen threw his stick to prevent a goal against.

Sam Poulin taking the penalty shot, and a nice move to his backhand to score to cut WBS deficit to 4-2 with 5:13 left. @InsideAHLHockey pic.twitter.com/OIZeWIF4Ag

— Tony Androckitis* (@TonyAndrock) March 10, 2024

In his mind, the experience he is gaining from occupying a prominent position in the AHL helps him better prepare for when the Penguins do call.

“I’ve been playing a lot of minutes and have a pretty big role, too, so I think it’s running up my game to make sure that once I get a call-up, all my weaknesses or all the stuff that I wanted to work on in the past are better (so that) I can be reliable for the coaches that put me on the ice,” Poulin said.

Adversity has not been limited to injuries for Poulin, who notably took a leave of absence from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in 2022-23 for more than three months to address mental health concerns.

Poulin, a native of Blainville, Quebec, returned home in early December 2022, before rejoining Wilkes-Barre/Scranton the following March.

Fast forward to now, and Poulin, the Penguins’ first-round (No. 21 overall) pick in 2019, seems to be reaping the rewards of that reset.

“It’s been a long time. I didn’t really enjoy playing hockey this much, so it just feels good to come to the rink and have a blast every day with the boys,” Poulin said. “I feel really good.

“… Our group is awesome. Everyone gets along really well, and I think we have a really special group here. Just makes it way more fun to play hockey when you have a good time with the boys.”

Given the Penguins’ offensive struggles this season, fans would not be out of line for questioning why management has yet to give Poulin a shot. Between now and mid-April, such an opportunity might be in the cards.

If and when that day comes, Poulin’s salary cap hit of $863,333 will need to be taken into consideration. However, the NHL’s 23-man roster limit applies only through the trade deadline.

So from here on out, more latitude exists to make recalls.

At the moment, the Penguins are pleased with Poulin’s progress but mindful of his time missed this season and last.

“He’s there. He’s scratching at the door,” said Wilkes-Barre/Scranton coach J.D. Forrest. “He’s got a lot of translatable skills that will definitely do him well in the NHL. I think some of this year has been a little bit of timing. He had a couple injuries around call-up time.

“He missed a lot of time last year, so it’s more about getting him on a roll and having him play these games for us and take on tons of ice time in all kinds of situations. … He’s right there as far as his ability and how he’s playing. We’re happy with where he’s at.”

Poulin made his NHL debut Oct. 25, 2022, recording an assist on a power-play goal by Evgeni Malkin in 12 minutes, 17 seconds of ice time.

He saw action in two other games with the Penguins before being reassigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton early into November.

Less than a month after that, things changed drastically for Poulin when he decided to step away from hockey.

As he continues working in the AHL, Poulin is happy with himself as a player and person. He awaits the opportunity to demonstrate how he’s grown on and off the ice.

“Last year, I got called up, and then a couple of weeks later, I was back home and dealing with some stuff,” Poulin said. “I think I’ve come a long way since last year and did a lot of work on myself to get to this point, be in this position right now and be in this shape, too. So (a call-up) would be just a nice way to make me realize every time I work hard or there’s challenges or there’s something in the way, that I’m able to get through those things.

“I would feel differently than last year when I got called up, that’s for sure, but, obviously, that would still be a great feeling to get.”