There's no more waiting for Sam Poulin to make his mark on the Pittsburgh Penguins.
It is no secret that Jim Rutherford wasn’t very interested in making first-round draft selections over the course of his illustrious Pittsburgh Penguins career. Clearly a gambling man, Rutherford often traded his top-round draft picks to acquire pieces that could help make the Penguins stronger in their quest for Stanley Cups.
Pittsburgh won two championships during his tenure and made the constant trading of first-round picks worth it in the end. The downside of that is currently being felt when looking at the Penguins organization.
Before Ron Hextall selected Owen Pickering in the 2022 NHL Draft this past offseason, the Penguins had only made one first-round selection since 2015. That player happens to be 2019 first-round selection Sam Poulin.
Poulin, 21, is the most hyped prospect in the system solely because he’s got some real talent but also is the closest thing to a real NHL prospect the Penguins have had in some time. Of course players like Bryan Rust, Scott Wilson, and Tom Kuhnhackl ended up playing legitimate roles on a Stanley Cup team but none were labeled as top prospects upon their arrival.
Rust has obviously carved out a nice career and both Wilson and Kuhnhackl have played in NHL games outside of the Penguins organization.
Poulin might not become a top-line star like many people would like, but he has a real opportunity to make the roster if his preseason play is good enough.
The young Canadian forward was drafted as a right winger and finally made his pro debut last season. There was a path for Poulin to make the NHL straight out of juniors but it wasn’t meant to be. He played in three preseason games for the Penguins without getting on the scoresheet and didn’t look like a guy who was quite ready for the big leagues.
So he took his demotion to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and finished with 16 goals and 37 points in 72 games, which was good for second on the team behind Valtteri Puustinen’s 42.
On the surface, that seems like a good thing. However, Poulin ended up starting the season so poorly that the former first-rounder ended up a healthy scratch for WBS. He recovered to put up 30 of those points over the last 49 games of the regular season. He potted three goals and an assist in six playoff games for the Baby Penguins.
The strong end to the season certainly helped keep his stock up in the eyes of management in the Penguins’ organization. Without that, Poulin may have fallen off the radar and became a piece the Penguins could’ve used in a trade.
Pittsburgh enters the season as the oldest team in the NHL. They lack youth because of their farm system’s deficiencies and Poulin would be a welcomed addition to an older roster. It would also mean he broke through enough to become an NHL player, a development the Penguins would love to see.
With a lot of last season’s forwards back for this campaign, Poulin faces an uphill battle to make the roster. Complicating things even further is his positional identity.
Drafted as a right winger, Poulin ended up playing a good bit of center last year in a move to try and force him to be more defensively responsible on top of using his offensive talent. The move worked as he clearly seemed like a different player down the stretch.
Unfortunately for Poulin, the center position is one where the Penguins are the deepest in terms of their NHL roster. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jeff Carter, and Teddy Blueger figure to be the top four centers and the newly-acquired Ryan Poehling figures to see time there as well.
At right wing, the Penguins aren't as deep organizationally and would welcome Poulin’s growth on that side of the ice. Rust, Kasperi Kapanen, and Rickard Rakell are the only true right-wingers guaranteed a spot on this year’s team. It’s likely the Penguins would have to move someone to their off-wing if Poulin didn’t make the team.
Other youngsters such as Poehling, Alex Nylander, and Drew O’Connor will go to camp looking to make the same impression and, hopefully, make the NHL team come opening night.
While Poulin is still young, a first-rounders star only burns so brightly for so long until they’re considered a bust in hockey circles. Being sent to WBS to open the season wouldn’t be a death sentence for Poulin. In fact, he’s still waiver eligible so he could be sent back solely because the Penguins don’t want to lose a certain player.
But if Poulin goes another full NHL season without so much as seeing the ice at an NHL arena, the questions will start to surface about whether Poulin can become even a small piece of the future for the Penguins.
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