The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have signed defenseman Tommy Budnick to a one-year deal for next season, it was announced late last week.
A product of Petoskey, Mich., Budnick just finished his overage season in the OHL splitting time between the Guelph Storm and the Brantford Bulldogs. Across a combined 46 regular season games, he scored seven goals and added 20 assists for 27 points. In a further 11 playoff games for Brantford, Budnick added one goal and five points.
Drafted by the Kingston Frontenacs in the third round of the 2020 OHL Priority Selection, Budnick played in 233 career OHL regular season games, putting up 15 goals and 69 assists for 84 points. Before making the jump to junior hockey, Budnick played his minor hockey with Compuware and Honeybaked.
As Budnick gets set to make the jump to the pro level, he could have the chance to make an impact for the WBS Penguins right out of the gates. As someone who is reliable at both ends of the ice, Kyle Dubas and Penguins' management identified Budnick as a potential difference maker and he has the skills needed to be one.