PENS GIVE TRYOUT TO FORMER TOP PROSPECT

There was a new winger on Sidney Crosby’s line at Penguins practice yesterday. So new, in fact, that he isn’t a Pittsburgh Penguin yet. And it will take some practice just to learn how to pronounce his name.

Former Edmonton Oiler Jesse Puljujarvi who was the fourth overall draft choice in the NHL in 2016, showed up on the ice at Cranberry after being invited to a free agent tryout with the Penguins. He had bilateral hip surgery in the offseason and has been rehabbing since then, unable to connect with a new team after becoming a free agent. He scored 5 goals with 11 assists last season with Edmonton and Carolina. He has 51 career goals in 334 NHL games.

Coach Mike Sullivan says Puljujarvi has a chance to become a Penguin.

Puljujarvi’s free agent tryout can last as long as he and the Penguins wish, but they can only cover his expenses for ten days. He can take part in all activities except games. He said that he is not yet 100 percent recovered from his surgery but is close.

Injured defensemen P.O. Joseph and Chad Ruhwedel both were full practice participants yesterday. Joseph has missed the past sixteen games and Ruhwedel the past nine with undisclosed injuries. Injured forward Noel Acciari and Rickard Rakell both skated before practice and forward Matt Nieto worked out off the ice.

Stuck in a four-game losing streak, Sullivan says the Penguins just need to keep working to escape the doldrums they’ve found themselves in, and he still believes in the group.

The Penguins have fallen into seventh place in the Metro Division, four points behind the Hurricanes and Devils and just two points ahead of last place Columbus. Still, Sullivan says there is no panic with his veteran team.