It has been a whirlwind of a season for Pittsburgh Penguins' young defenseman Harrison Brunicke.
After making the NHL roster out of training camp, Brunicke played in only a few games before finding himself a frequent healthy scratch, with his most recent NHL game coming in a Nov. 3 loss against the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was then sent on an AHL conditioning loan to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS) for five days, where he showed well. And - most recently - he was loaned to Team Canada for World Junior Camp.
Now, he finds himself likely slotting in a prominent role for Canada.
On Saturday, during the first day of World Junior camp, Brunicke was on a top-four pairing with 2025 first-round pick Kashawn Aitcheson, who was selected 17th overall by the New York Islanders. Aitcheson, a big, hard-hitting blueliner, has 19 goals and 32 points in 27 games this season for the Barrie Colts of the OHL.
Brunicke, 19, was loaned to the WJC by the Penguins in order to give him some big, meaningful minutes on what is presumed will be a stacked Canada roster for this year's tournament. The decision to pair Brunicke with Aitcheson - one of the CHL's best defensemen - indicates that he will probably be in a lot of high-stakes situations, should the pairing stick.
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Brunicke is also expected to be in the mix for Canada's leadership group, assuming he breaks camp.
Canada's World Junior camp runs from Dec. 13-23 before a brief holiday hiatus. Final rosters are due Dec. 24, and the World Junior Championship will take place in St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minn. on Dec. 26 - Jan. 5.
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