The Pittsburgh Penguins appear to have reassigned rookies Rutger McGroarty and Ville Koivunen to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Tuesday.
Inside the AHL reporter, Tony Androckitis first noticed the AHL transaction late Tuesday morning. And the moves are confirmed according to the NHL media site, as neither McGroarty nor Koivunen are listed on the Pittsburgh Penguins’ roster.
McGroarty and Koivunen were healthy scratches Monday when the Penguins beat the New York Islanders 8-3 at UBS Arena. Rookie Avery Hayes played and scored his third career goal in the third period.
Hayes remains on the official roster.
This season, Koivunen has struggled to find traction in the NHL. He has just seven points (2-5-7) in 36 games. McGroarty has spent most of the season in WBS, playing only 21 NHL games, registering five points (2-3-5).
Does that mean Evgeni Malkin will be available Tuesday when the Penguins host the Detroit Red Wings at PPG Paints Arena? Malkin was not in the lineup Monday, but after practice Sunday, coach Dan Muse seemed to indicate it was possible Malkin would play.
When players are reassigned, they must play at least one game in the AHL before returning to the NHL. The WBS Penguins’ next game is Friday.
Pittsburgh Hockey Now will update the situation with a separate story after Penguins coach Dan Muse speaks to the media at 5 p.m. Tuesday, or if the Penguins release an update sooner.
Tags: Pittsburgh Penguins rutger mcgroarty Ville Koivunen
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