Penguins Prospect Jagger Joshua: Now That’s What I’m Talkin’ About

Perhaps it was kismet.

A day after I wrote an article bemoaning the Penguins’ lack of muscle, one of the very few players in the organization with an aggressive bent had a huge impact yesterday at the Prospects Challenge.

Forward Jagger Joshua (No. 23 pictured above) delivered a booming neutral-zone hit on an unsuspecting Senators prospect on his opening shift, then proceeded to lather, rinse and repeat throughout the contest. Jolting foes with bodychecks totaling in double figures according to one observer’s unofficial count and drawing at least one retaliatory penalty.

The result? The Pens’ prospects won by a landslide, 8-3.

A far cry from the previous evening, when we lost to the Bruins’ prospects by a 4-2 count with a lineup described as “plain vanilla.”

Can anyone in a position of authority (ahem…Mike Sullivan) not see the difference some physicality makes?

To digress, I would love to have been a fly on the wall and watched Sully’s reaction to Jagger’s forceful play. If I had to guess at his expression? Bitter beer face.

Fortunately, Baby Pens and prospects coach J.D. Forrest noticed. Crediting Joshua with being the tone-setter, Forrest told the P-G’s Matt Venzel, “He plays with an edge. He’s not shy out there. And he brings a type of juice to the bench and a different type of swagger, and you love to see it. It gets guys into the game. You don’t have a choice. He’s bringing you into the game no matter what.”

Sounds a lot like departed Pens winger Jason Zucker, who Sullivan credited with having “the ability to drag us into the fight.” An element that would appear to be missing from the current bunch as we approach training camp.

For years I’ve been banging the drum for the Pens to add some legitimate physicality to the lineup. Forrest did a better job of explaining the benefits than I’ll ever do. That is, unless you don’t want your team to be emotionally engaged (Sully).

For the record, Joshua’s a 24-year-old left wing and the kid brother of Vancouver’s Dakota Joshua, who employs a similar spirited style. Jagger stands 6’3” and weighs 196 pounds according to HockeyDB. He played four seasons for Michigan State and didn’t really produce much until his senior year, when he netted a team-best 13 goals in 37 games to go with 96 penalty minutes. A whopping total for this day and age.

Following Joshua’s senior season, the Baby Pens signed him to an AHL deal on March 21. Seemingly a clandestine move that, intentionally or otherwise, appeared to skirt Sullivan’s sphere of influence.

In seven games with the Baby Pens, Joshua recorded no points and 15 penalty minutes, including a spirited fight with Charlotte’s Anthony Bitetto, a seven-year NHL vet. It should be noted that top pick Owen Pickering had no points as well in an eight-game cameo with the Baby Pens.

As for Joshua’s chances of ever suiting up for our Pens, let alone earning an NHL contract? An uphill climb for sure, especially given Sullivan’s well-documented aversion to tough guys. Yet the Dearborn, Michigan, native is quick to recognize and embrace his uniqueness among our prospects.

“Maybe something that can put me on the map is my physicality,” Joshua said. “They were kind of missing a player like me in their organization.”

Truer words were never spoken.

Poulin for Sam

Sam Poulin also stood out.

One of the few physically mature prospects (6’1” 208) in an organization littered with Smurfs and Ichabod Crane-types, the Pens would certainly benefit from a player of Sam’s bulk and stature.

By all accounts, the former first-rounder and junior hockey scoring ace plays a well-rounded game and is especially strong in the battle areas.

“He’s a first-round pick for a reason,” said fellow forward and top pick Brayden Yager. “He’s fun to watch when you’re on the bench. He works so hard and he’s so strong on his skates. When you watch him down low, he’s like a bear down there because he’s just so hard to take off the puck.”

Forrest seconded that notion.

“When Sam has the puck on his stick down low, he’s near impossible to knock off,” said the Baby Pens skipper. “On the defensive side, it’s the same way. He’s able to close guys out, finish plays and get us going the other way. As a scorer, he does a lot of grunt work that, when Sam does it, he just makes it look easier than it really is.”

In addition to his physical prowess and power game, Poulin’s versatile and can play either wing or center, his favorite position.

“I like playing center because I just feel like I can lead my line a bit more because you’re the one taking all the draws, making the plays, so I feel more comfortable because I can have this little task on my shoulders,” he said. “Also, I just feel like there’s no dead zones or moments where I don’t need to go in the corners. I feel it just helps me to be more focused the whole game.”

Is this the season Sam makes his move? With a logjam of free agents and PTOs looming in his path, it’s hard to envision the 22-year-old making the team out of training camp. But IMHO, we could sorely use a player with his attributes.

I’m pullin’ for you, Sam.