• Powered by Roundtable
    Nick Horwat
    Nick Horwat
    Sep 16, 2023, 18:27

    Key youngsters chipped in for the Pittsburgh Penguins as they take their first win at the Prospect Challenge.

    Key youngsters chipped in for the Pittsburgh Penguins as they take their first win at the Prospect Challenge.

    The Pittsburgh Penguins pipeline was back in action for their second contest in the annual Prospect Challenge.

    This time around, facing off against prospects from the Ottawa Senators organization, the Penguins were looking to find more offensive output.

    A few lineup adjustments gave top goalie prospect Joel Blomqvist the day off and Taylor Gauthier the start in net.

    Goal scorers from the opening contest Sam Houde and Lukas Svejkovsky were also given the scratch to give a few new faces some playing time.

    While the Penguins were looking to bounce back after a flat performance against the Boston Bruins, they again let up an early goal.

    The Senators found the back of the net first a minute and a half into the contest.

    Evan Vierling answered back for the Penguins to knot the game at one just a couple minutes later.

    The first period didn’t bring much entertainment, but Penguins forward Jagger Joshua provided some fireworks by throwing multiple big hits.

    The second frame fell far more in the Penguins favor with three goals including tallies from a pair of the most important prospects in the system.

    Recent first round pick Brayden Yager recorded his first goal in a Penguins uniform early in the second with a one-time wrister from the point.

    The puck found its way through the traffic to put the Penguins up by a goal.

    Dillon Hamaliuk was a throw-in prospect as part of the Erik Karlsson trade, but he is looking to contribute in a new system.

    On a very nice setup from Atley Calvert, Hamaliuk recorded his first goal with the Penguins organization.

    As tensions and chippy-ness increased throughout the period, Sam Poulin showed some tenacity by battling around the net and finding a loose puck.

    Poulin battled through a scrum and buried the puck to give the Penguins a 4-1 lead with about half the contest remaining.

    The heat between the two teams didn’t simmer as Penguins defenseman Justin Lee and Senators forward Connor Clattenburg dropped the gloves for a fight.

    Things simmered for the remainder of the period and the Senators managed to crawl back into the contest with a late tally to make it 4-2.

    Tempers were re-ignited following a goal by Penguins forward Avery Hayes when Joshua continued to mix it up with Senators players.

    The Penguins didn't carry their 5-2 lead for long as the Senators answered for their third goal with about 10 minutes to play.

    With time starting to wind down, Hamaliuk picked up his second of the game off of a great tip on a point shot from Andre Anania.

    The Penguins tacked on an empty net goal before capitalizing on a power play goal in the closing seconds.

    Gauthier played the full 60 minutes between the pipes and backstopped the Penguins en route to a 8-3 thrashing of the Senators.

    Aside from allowing an early tally, the contest was all Penguins and a huge bounce back after a sloppy opening match.

    The Penguins have one game remaining in the Prospect Challenge against the host city Buffalo Sabres.

    Make sure you bookmark Inside the Penguins for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more.

    Penguins Legend To Play 35th Year of Pro Hockey

    Sidney Crosby Opens up About First Meeting With Kyle Dubas

    Slow Start To Challenge for Key Penguins Prospects

    Penguins Offense Falls Flat in Prospect Challenge Opener

    Sidney Crosby Would Move To Wing To Play with Connor McDavid

    • undefined
    • undefined
    Image