Its that time of the month my friends, time for me to look back across our Pittsburgh Penguins prospects pool and see what they are up to. There have been several changes since my last update. GM Ron Hextall has been rather busy trading players and signing others.
Hextall has been a busy bee signing undrafted free agents from the Juniors and College ranks. Way back on March 1st, Jordan Frasca, a Center, out of the OHL and Taylor Gauthier, a Goalie, from the WHL. On March 10th our GM signed Corey Andonovski, a Right Wing (RW) and Colin Swoyer, a Right-Handed Defenseman (RHD), on March 28th, from the NCAA. Frasca and Gauthier have continued their seasons with their Junior teams while Adnonovski and Swoyer have been assigned to our AHL farm club, the Wilkes Barre – Scranton (WBS) Penguins – now that the NCAA season, at least for them is over.
| Name | Po | S/C | Age | DOB | Hgt | Wgt |
| Andonovski, Corey | RW | R | 23 | Mar 26, 1999 | 6’-1” (185cm) | 194lbs (88kg) |
| Frasca, Jordan | C | L | 20 | Jul 5, 2001 | 6’-2” (188cm) | 183 lbs (83kg) |
| Gauthier, Taylor | G | R | 21 | Feb 15, 2001 | 6’-2” (188cm) | 207 lbs (94kg) |
| Swoyer, Colin | RHD | R | 24 | Mar 31, 1998 | 6’-0” (183cm) | 185lbs 84kg) |
Swoyer not only is an RHD, but he put up 23 Points (Pts) in 36 Games Played (GP). At 24 he is also close to that magical age of 27, where most Defensemen really mature into their position. Now, I am just throwing this out there, not saying I know anything for sure, but doesn’t that seem as though it might be a tip of the hand about the resigning of Kris Letang?
Almost all the video I have found so far of Swoyer shows off his offensive game, mostly sneaking in on the weakside for some pretty Goals (G). Therefore, the little bit of evidence I have seen shows that he is a Mike Sullivan type Defenseman, best suited for trying to drive the offense from the blue line.
Mr. Hextall traded Goalie prospect Calle Clang and a 2nd round pick in the coming draft for Rickard Rakell at the trade deadline. I said it before, and I will say it again. If the team can resign Rakell, the trade is probably worth it. If Rakell is a rental, we lost a prospect that looks like he will be an NHL player some day.
Valterri Puustenin still leads the team in Gs 18 and Pts 35, but it was Samuel Poulin, Drew O’Connor, and Michael Chaput that tied for the most Pts in March (11). Poulin had 7 G, O’Connor and Chaput 3 G. Juuso Riikola checked in for the month of March with 9 Pts, all Assists (A).
The new kid, Andonovski, has not had a chance to really do anything yet. He has only played 5 games. As Penguins go, he is on the larger size, 6’-1”, 194 lbs – not really a typical Mike Sullivan Smurf.
| Player | Team | League | Po | S | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| Almari, Niclas | WBS Penguins | AHL | D | R | 11 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Almari, Niclas | Wheeling Nailers | ECHL | D | R | 6 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| Almari, Niclas | Lukko | Liiga | D | R | 15 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| Almeida, Justin | WBS Penguins | AHL | LW | L | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 0 |
| Almeida, Justin | Wheeling Nailers | ECHL | C/LW | L | 45 | 26 | 31 | 57 | -14 | 4 |
| Andonovski, Corey | WBS Penguins | AHL | RW | R | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 2 |
| Andonovski, Corey | Princeton Univ | NCAA | RW | R | 31 | 10 | 12 | 22 | -12 | 34 |
| Angello, Anthony | WBS Penguins | AHL | RW | R | 39 | 7 | 10 | 17 | -2 | 22 |
| Bellerive, Jordy | WBS Penguins | AHL | C | L | 60 | 8 | 17 | 25 | -1 | 94 |
| Björkqvist, Kasper | WBS Penguins | AHL | RW | R | 42 | 7 | 2 | 9 | -2 | 22 |
| Chaput, Michael | WBS Penguins | AHL | C | L | 45 | 8 | 17 | 25 | 7 | 22 |
| Domingue, Louis | WBS Penguins | AHL | G | L | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| D’Orio, Alex | WBS Penguins | AHL | G | L | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Drozg, Jan | WBS Penguins | AHL | RW | R | 23 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 8 |
| Drozg, Jan | Grand Rapids Griffins | AHL | RW | R | 8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -5 | 4 |
| Drozg, Jan | Slovenia | OGQ | RW | R | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 8 |
| Fedun, Taylor | WBS Penguins | AHL | D | R | 44 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 12 | 18 |
| Gruden, Jonathan | WBS Penguins | AHL | LW | L | 62 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 0 | 58 |
| Hållander, Filip | WBS Penguins | AHL | LW | L | 50 | 10 | 11 | 21 | -2 | 18 |
| Joseph, Pierre-Olivier | WBS Penguins | AHL | D | L | 49 | 9 | 22 | 31 | 9 | 34 |
| Lee, Cam | WBS Penguins | AHL | D | L | 50 | 1 | 13 | 14 | -9 | 52 |
| Légaré, Nathan | WBS Penguins | AHL | RW | R | 52 | 7 | 8 | 15 | -6 | 30 |
| Lindberg, Filip | WBS Penguins | AHL | G | L | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Maniscalco, Josh | WBS Penguins | AHL | D | R | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -4 | 12 |
| Maniscalco, Josh | Wheeling Nailers | ECHL | D | R | 57 | 15 | 32 | 47 | 3 | 68 |
| Nylander, Alexander | WBS Penguins | AHL | RW | R | 33 | 11 | 10 | 21 | -2 | 8 |
| Nylander, Alexander | Rockfor Icehogs | AHL | RW | R | 23 | 8 | 4 | 12 | -10 | 2 |
| O’Connor, Drew | WBS Penguins | AHL | LW | L | 22 | 9 | 13 | 22 | 0 | 17 |
| Poulin, Sam | WBS Penguins | AHL | LW | L | 59 | 13 | 19 | 32 | -6 | 43 |
| Puustinen, Valterri | WBS Penguins | AHL | RW | R | 61 | 18 | 18 | 36 | -11 | 12 |
| Reilly, Will | WBS Penguins | AHL | D | R | 28 | 1 | 3 | 4 | -6 | 12 |
| Reilly, Will | Wheeling Nailers | ECHL | D | R | 3 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 2 |
| Riikola, Juuso | WBS Penguins | AHL | D | L | 41 | 1 | 24 | 25 | -13 | 20 |
| Swoyer, Colin | Michigan State | NCAA | D | R | 36 | 5 | 18 | 23 | 11 | 22 |
| Swoyer, Colin | WBS Penguins | AHL | D | R | ||||||
| Zohorna, Radim | WBS Penguins | AHL | C | R | 31 | 7 | 8 | 15 | -11 | 10 |
| Airola, Santeri | Koovee | Mestis | D | R | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -3 | 2 |
| Ansons, Raivis | Baie-Comeau Drakkar | QMJHL | W | L | 19 | 6 | 18 | 24 | 14 | 6 |
| Ansons, Raivis | Saint John Sea Dogs | QMJHL | W | L | 24 | 7 | 17 | 24 | 6 | 12 |
| Ansons, Raivis | Latvia U20 “A” | WJC-29 D1A | W | L | 5 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 2 | 4 |
| Belliveau, Isaac | Gatineau Olympiques | QMJHL | D | L | 53 | 5 | 19 | 24 | 8 | 27 |
| Broz, Tristan | U of Minn | NCAA | F | L | 35 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 6 | 10 |
| Caulfield, Judd | U of N Dakota | NCAA | RW | R | 39 | 11 | 9 | 20 | 7 | 10 |
| Frasca, Jordan | Kingston Frontenacs | OHL | C | 57 | 41 | 42 | 83 | 30 | 28 | |
| Gorman, Liam | Princeton | NCAA | C | L | 28 | 3 | 3 | 6 | -12 | 16 |
| Laatsch, Daniel | U of Wis | NCAA | D | L | 28 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -8 | 4 |
| Masonius, Joseph | Utica Comets | AHL | D | L | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Masonius, Joseph | Adirondack Thunder | ECHL | D | L | 43 | 6 | 20 | 26 | -5 | 90 |
| Masonius, Joseph | Fort Wayne Komets | ECHL | D | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 18 | |
| McCleary, Ryan | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | D | R | 57 | 6 | 21 | 27 | 19 | 22 |
| Phillips, Clayton | Penn State | NCAA | D | L | 32 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 12 | 16 |
| Švejkovský, Lukáš | Medicine Hat Tigers | WHL | C/RW | R | 24 | 13 | 17 | 30 | -7 | 22 |
| Švejkovský, Lukáš | Seattle Thunderbirds | WHL | C/RW | R | 29 | 17 | 22 | 39 | 17 | 24 |
| Tankov, Kirill | SKA-Neva St. Petersburg | VHL | F | L | 38 | 10 | 11 | 21 | 14 | 10 |
| Tankov, Kirill | SKA-Neva St. Petersburg | VHL | F | L | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -3 | 0 |
| Tankov, Kirill | Russia U20 | WJC-20 | F | L | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -1 | 0 |
| Yoder, Chase | Providence College | NCAA | F | L | 38 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 3 | 14 |
Goaltending was suspect in March for our baby Penguins; they struggled. Louis Domingue did improve his Win-Loss-OTL record a little from (3-4-2 to 8-7-2) but he was very inconsistent. He had a couple of really bad outings. And with Domingues return to WBS, Alex D’Orio was sent back down to the Wheeling Nailers.
| Player | Team | League | C | GP | SO | GAA | W | L | OT | Sv% |
| Domingue, Louis | WBS Penguins | AHL | R | 18 | 0 | 2.56 | 8 | 7 | 4 | 0.920 |
| D’Orio, Alex | WBS Penguins | AHL | L | 21 | 1 | 2.91 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 0.894 |
| D’Orio, Alex | Wheeling Nailers | ECHL | L | 10 | 0 | 4.01 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0.866 |
| Lindberg, Filip | WBS Penguins | AHL | L | 7 | 0 | 2.76 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0.915 |
| Blomqvist, Joel | Kärpät U20 | U20 SM-Sarja | L | 1 | 0 | 4.63 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.868 |
| Blomqvist, Joel | Kärpät | Liiga | L | 20 | 5 | 1.32 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 0.940 |
| Blomqvist, Joel | Hermes | Mestis | L | 4 | 0 | 2.26 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0.882 |
| Blomqvist, Joel | Finland U20 | International-Jr | L | 6 | 0 | 0.889 | ||||
| Gauthier, Taylor | Prince George Cougars | WHL | R | 14 | 0 | 2.75 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0.923 |
| Gauthier, Taylor | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | R | 23 | 4 | 1.97 | 19 | 4 | 0 | 0.937 |
Defensively, Riikola was the most noticeable Defenseman in March, as mentioned above. Pierre-Olivier Joseph’s offense tailed off. He only posted 1 G and 2 A in the month but still managed to be +3
April will should see a couple of new faces on the baby Penguins blue line. Not only did the Pens AHL affiliate add Swoyer but Clayton Phillips finished his career up at Penn State, was signed and should be seeing some action in WBS.
I have mentioned before, I have been watching Phillips, now with Swoyer, there are 3 defensemen down on our farm I will be watching. Swoyer may be the most interesting one to watch. With Letang looking all but gone this off-season, to free agency, I will be very interested to see how far away he is.
Justin Almeida stayed on a Pt per Game pace notching 6 G and 8 A in 14 GP in March. He has 26 G and 57 Pts in 45 GP for the season for the Nailers Unfortunately, he has never been able to take advantage of his opportunities to stick in WBS let alone raise up to NHL level.
On Defense Josh Maniscalco added another 9 Pts in 14 GP, this month but defensively, he struggled more than a bit, posting a -13 in the +/- department.
In goal, D’Orio has struggled going back down to the ECHL. His GAA has ballooned up from 3.25 to 4.01 and his Sv% has dropped from 0.885 to 0.868.
The big addition to the team seems to be Jordan Frasca. This kid is lighting it up in the OHL, after going undrafted during his draft year. He plays on a team with wunderkin Shane Wright, every pundits choice as this years number 1 overall draft pick. Frasca leads the Kingston Frontenacs with 41 G and is tied with Wright for 2nd in Pts with 83. I wrote about him before. From the video I have seen of him Frasca in not afraid to go to the net. Maybe this kid could provide that Center drive that Phil, Mike, and I were coveting just a couple of days ago.
Among the kids that started the month in the organization, Lukáš Švejkovský had another good month with his new team in Seattle. Švejkovský scored 10 G and added 9 A in 14 GP and was +10 for the month. Raivis Ansons also added 19 more Pts to his totals in March, including 5 G and was a +8 in 14 GP as well.
The Russian version of the AHL started their playoffs in March. Kirill Tankov had 5 pts in 13 GP.
Defensively, there are no players in our junior ranks that really stood out for me.
In Goal, Joel Blomqvist finished the Liiga season as its top Goalie. His GAA dropped a couple of points, down from 1.34 to 1.32 and his Sv% rose from 0.939 to 0.940. In 3 playoff games he is still a top Liiga with a GAA of 0.91 and a Sv% of 0.947, posting a W-L record of 2-1.
The Penguins other Goalie prospect in the Junior ranks also leads his league. Taylor Gauthier leads the WHL with combined totals of 2.25 GAA and a 0.931 Sv% between his time with the Prince George Cougars and Portland Winterhawks. His W-L-OT record is 26-9-0 with 4 Shutouts (SO).
Between Blomqvist, Gauthier, and Frasca, it looks like there may be a couple pf pretty good prospects in the pipe line
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Thank you for this detailed look at the system. Very difficult to find anything of any depth online. I was able too watch online last year’s QMJHL final so I got a good look at both Poulin and Legare. Legare seems to find to legs to chase down pucks and manages to get himself open below the hashmarks. That stood out, as well as his obvious quick release and a shot that - reminiscent of Kessel’s - makes the goalie drop the puck like a hot potato, even from a far range. The other thing that stood out, on the negative side, was wide turns and a kind of Tangredi like lag on transition when his side lost the puck Poulin made most of his plays through the neutral zone and distributed the puck well; I hope he sticks at center, where we are thin in the system. Both those kids need more developmental time, but I would like to see Nylander get promoted sooner than later. He’s either 24 or close to it; I get that they do not like his +/- and likely prefer, when he comes up, for it to be for good, but I am eager to see how he could help us NOW with his immense skill set. Was it you who remarked at how he is a “moving target” in the offensive zone, and how he does not plant in The slot but instead moves into the good ice to find shooting lanes? If so, this reminds me of Guentzel approach: we could use another one like this! That would make what four right-shooting wingers, all of whom have the skill to take advantage of the off-wing: that would really juice the offense which is far too prosaic at times.
So as far as Swoyer is concerned: you disclaimed knowing anything, so I’m a little underwhelmed by the notion that Hextall and Co. are imagining his presence I. The system would somehow be insurance against HOF-bound Kris Letang exiting the scene? Hey hope he is the goods and I love that you mention he has the skill to drop weak-side ala Letang to make plays/shoot but... let’s hope maybe a re-signed Letang is a mentor of some kind for him! Thanks again for this report!
Thank You John Joseph,
I am not sure when it happened, but trying to keep an eye on the Penguins coming up in the ranks has become a bit of an obsession with me - so this is a bit of a labor of love.
Sounds like you have a scout's eye, by the way you comment on Legare. I look forward to more of your insights.
I like Legare and Poulin. My partner in Crime Rick B also likes Poulin at Center and it seems to be suiting him right now. I wonder how that will turn out long term with Carter resigning and Malkin apparently looking to take a team friendly. I don't mind Carter on Wing, that could be a solution, when Crosby and Malkin are both healthy.
About Nylander, funny thing is I had the same thought as you when watching his highlights. He did remind me a bit of Guentzel. With the Jekyll and Hyde Goaltending and the limited number of real Defensive prospects in WBS, I personally am not all that worried about our AHL prospects +/- this year.
With Marino, Ruhwedel, Freidman, behind Letang, losing him could be debilitating but I really don't want Hextall to sign him to 5 year $8 million. That is why I want to see WBS to get Swoyer on the ice ASAP. Our Penguins are not deep on Defense.
Great article, I love reading about our prospects, Ron is doing a great job... hopefully even just 1 of these undrafted kids becomes a hidden gem.
You didn't mention Ty Glover, a big Canadian kid at 6-3.... a friend I work with is friends with his Dad and coached him in London. His Dad played in the O , his Mom was a very good soccer player, she played for the women's Canadian team.. Tys brother is a good player and both boys are great kids. He put up good numbers at Michigan University.
Hey Pens4ever,
Thanks for reminding me about Ty Glover. I started writing this piece before GMRH signed him and forgot to add him in. Looking at the size of these signings, these new kids are not Sullivan Smurfs. I wonder what how all this plays out.
(I'll add him in a little later tonight, when I get the chance - Thanks again for the reminder!)
Jim and Rick,
You both mentioned the job Hextall has done recruiting these FA. I agree 100%. As I was reading both of your comments about Hextall I was reminded of one of my first complaints about JR, I was so upset during the 2016-2017 Cup run, with Vegas expansion Draft coming, the enormous number of UFAs and RFAs and JR doing absolutely nothing, waiting until the Champaign soaked every player and fan and the hangovers set in, before he even started to think about what he was going to do.
I have no idea what next season is going to look like, but I really, really do appreciate how hard Hextall is working right now, not waiting for the off-season to raise and salvage the ship wreck JR left.
100% right on the money Coach.
As they say "You don't wait until your house is half burned down before you call 911" !
Hextall is being pro active.
Thanks Coach,
Great information you provided. I am glad to see Hextall out making moves to acquire decent talent any way possible.If just 2 of these new kids he has acquired makes it into a Pen's uniform than it is worth it. Frasca is doing well in the OHL and I hope he can jump into the WBS system next year.Gauthier also is a great prospect for us as the WHL is the most demanding of all 3 Canadian Junior Leagues to play in.
If we can just land a top 5 pick in 2022 by trading" someone of value" away and keep our existing first rounder maybe we can start to reverse the trend .
Thanks again
Jim
Thanks Jim,
I, too, am hoping that Hextall can find a way to land a top pick. Top 5 would be great, but at least a top 10.
Wow, Other Rick, great work as always... :)
A terrific, in-depth look at our farm system...I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and scanning the stats. With the recent spate of free-agent signings, Hextall's already working to add young talent. Frasca, in particular, sounds intriguing. Also good to see Poulin developing. Wish we could say the same for Nathan Legare. I'm really pulling for that kid. He's got such a great shot and release...I would never have imaged he'd struggle to score at the minor-league level. But I guess the jump from junior to the pro ranks is anything but easy.
Anyway, thanks for keeping us updated!
Rick
Thanks Rick,
Frasca not only looks intriguing from a stats perspective, but the video I have seen of him always shows him in the dirty areas and/or driving towards them.
I have to find a way to get up to WBS so I can actually see a full game from the stands. I would love to see what is keeping Legare from playing like he did in Juniors. But Poulin, it would great to get another big body out there.