“As far as my mindset and my play, my goal is to stay here this year,” Brunicke told NHL.com on the first day of prospect development camp. “So, I’m going to do whatever I can to make that happen.”
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In his first camp, Brunicke did well enough to work alongside defenseman Marcus Pettersson for a bit before being sent back to Kamloops of the Western Hockey League.
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“If you watch his games in Wilkes-Barre, there was growth,” Penguins director of player development Tom Kostopoulos said. “Like, it took off. It was impressive how he grew and the games in the playoffs, he looked very confident for a young kid. So, we’re really excited about the potential he’s got to be a really good two-way defender with some offensive upside.”
“Credit to him, he figured it out quick,” Wilkes-Barre/Scranton coach Kirk MacDonald said. “Came in initially and, you know, he had junior habits where you can just skate by people and hold on to the puck for a long time. I thought he did a really good job the last couple regular-season games. And in the playoff stint, he was moving pucks quick, jumping into the rush.”