3 Pittsburgh Penguins Prospects Expected To Get NHL Playing Time In 2024-25

The Pittsburgh Penguins are not done competing yet in their minds, but at the same time have bolstered their prospect pool and potentially given themselves some reinforcements on the fly. There are some solid future NHL players coming fast and pushing their way into the NHL, so we're going to highlight three from the Penguins that are expected to get NHL playing time.

Rutger McGroarty

There was a lot of news surrounding the newest addition to the prospect pool in Pittsburgh with Rutger McGroarty's arrival from Winnipeg. Pittsburgh is excited to have him and the young forward is excited to have a good chance at making the team out of training camp. The 20-year-old was a point-per-game player in both seasons he spent at the University of Michigan and finished last season with 16 goals and 52 points in 36 games. He is ready for the NHL and will at least get a shot. The Penguins need the injection into their lineup.

Vasily Pomonaryev

Vasily Pomonaryev is one of the next up forwards that will get a shot in Pittsburgh if there are injuries or if the team needs to mix things up. He's now had two solid seasons in the AHL after coming over from Russia. He works hard, can produce offensively, and is a strong penalty killer. He scored a goal and two points in his only two NHL games in Carolina last season and is set for a little more action this season with the Penguins.

Joel Blomqvist

Joel Blomqvist has impressed each of the last two seasons. He put up strong numbers in Liiga in 2022-23 and then took a nice step forward and finished last season with a .921 SV% in the AHL. He is the next up in net for the Penguins and looks like he is progressing to eventually take over the number one down the line. If Tristan Jarry or Alex Nedeljkovic miss any time, Blomqvist will be the first called up and should at least see a couple of games of action.