Pittsburgh Penguins Officially Recall Top Prospect To The NHL

After a devastating loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night, the Pittsburgh Penguins hopes in 2024/25 are all but over, with the team now likely to officially fall out of the Stanley Cup Playoffs race.

As a result, it makes sense that they would now look to the future, and on Friday they've officially done that as they have recalled top prospect Rutger McGroarty, who made his NHL debut earlier this season after being acquired by the Winnipeg Jets over the summer.

The 20-year old was the No. 14 overall pick back in the 2022 NHL Draft, and was expected to do big things in Winnipeg, but after informing the team that he never wanted to wear their jersey at the NHL level, he requested a trade this past summer and was eventually granted that and landed with the Penguins.

To begin 2024/25, he was on the NHL roster and played in 3 games, tallying no points and a -1 differential, and since then he's been with the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins of the AHL after a major demotion.

Down there, McGroarty has tallied 14 goals and 39 points in 60 games played, showing that he's certainly got the skills to compete at the professional level, as he has led the team in scoring over the past five weeks, earning his recall to the NHL.

Given Pittsburgh's lack of high level prospects, they are desperately hoping that McGroarty can turn into the star that many expected, and while he may not produce at a high level upon his return, the next 10 games could be incredibly valuable experience for the 20-year old heading into the summer.