![Budnick playing for Guelph before being traded to Brantford at the trade deadline [Natalie Shaver/OHL Images].](https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/65d398f1-2f15-4c94-846b-179e57274a95.jpeg)
Earlier today, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins announced the signing of Brantford Bulldogs' overage defender Tommy Budnick.
The experienced defender is fresh off a successful season during which he amassed seven goals and 20 assists in 46 games. Budnick scored a goal and added four assists in eleven playoff games before Oshawa eliminated Brantford in the second round of the OHL Playoffs.
Budnick played for three different teams during his four-year OHL career. The Kingston Frontenacs drafted Budnick in the third round of the 2020 OHL Priority Selection.
He spent two complete seasons in Kingston before being traded to Guelph during the 2023-24 season. A year later, he was moved from Guelph to Brantford, where he would finish his career.
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In 233 games, Budnick amassed 15 goals and 69 assists for a total of 84 points. At 6-foot-1, he is a large defender who can contribute offensively while playing a physical game.
Though the American-born defender went undrafted at the 2022 NHL Draft, he continued to progress and develop. Two years later, he now has the opportunity to continue his hockey career in the AHL.
This season, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins were a better-than-average team in the Eastern Conference of the AHL. They finished sixth in the conference with a 40-24-7-1 record.