The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins made a clear push to bolster both ends of the lineup on Tuesday, locking in AHL contracts for forwards Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and Hugh McGing, plus defenseman Ryan Mast for the 2026-27 season.
Harvey-Pinard is the biggest name in the group. The 27-year-old is coming off a 66-game season in which he matched his AHL career high with 21 goals and finished tied for third on the Penguins with 39 points.
He also added four points in 10 Calder Cup Playoff games. Across his career, he has logged 85 NHL games split between Pittsburgh and Montreal, along with 165 points in the AHL.
McGing, also 27, arrives after six seasons in the St. Louis organization.
He became the Springfield Thunderbirds’ all-time leader in games played with 323 and put up 31 points in 66 games last season. He has appeared in nine NHL games and scored his first NHL goal this past year.
Mast gives the Penguins another right-shot option on the back end. The 23-year-old defenseman was a 2021 sixth-round pick of the Bruins and spent last season between Providence and Rockford.
There was also movement elsewhere in the league. Agent Dan Milstein said his client, defenseman Roman Schmidt, has signed a one-year contract extension with the Minnesota Wild.
Schmidt is a 6-foot-5, 225-pound right shot from Midland, Michigan, and the 23-year-old fits the mold of a physical, defense-first blueliner. A former U.S.
National Team Development Program and OHL player, he has 173 penalty minutes in 98 career AHL games and nine points. Originally a 2021 third-round pick, 96th overall, by Tampa Bay, Schmidt’s entry-level deal expired this summer.
He was given a qualifying offer as a restricted free agent before agreeing to the new contract, which is expected to keep him with AHL Iowa.
And in Ottawa’s orbit, Arthur Kaliyev could be on the move again. Elite Prospect’s Dylan Griffing reported that multiple KHL clubs are interested in the unrestricted free agent, and noted that Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod chased him last summer before he signed with Ottawa.
The appeal is obvious: Kaliyev led the AHL with 40 goals and 68 points in 70 games for Belleville this past season, but he played only two NHL games for the Senators, who did not tender him a qualifying offer. The 25-year-old former Kings second-round pick still hasn’t found a permanent NHL foothold, and a KHL return would give him a fresh start.
In Other News...
Wild Just Made Another Defense Move Fans Will Want Explained
The Wild added another layer to their blue line mix by signing Roman Schmidt to a one-year, two-way contract, a low-risk move that gives the organization more size and depth to evaluate. The deal comes with a league-minimum NHL cap hit of $850,000 and a minor-league salary of $100,000, which fits the profile of a player the team can keep developing without much financial commitment.
Schmidt, a 23-year-old defenseman originally drafted by Tampa Bay, arrived in Minnesota after a busy season that included two trades before he landed with the Wild. He split last year between stops in the AHL, where he put up three assists in 48 games, and Iowa, and his appeal is tied less to offense than to the physical edge he brings on the back end. For a team still sorting out its defensive depth chart, the move is interesting not just for what Schmidt is now, but for what Minnesota thinks he might become. [Read more 🡒]
Wild May Have Another Tarasenko Style Swing If The Cap Cooperates
Bill Guerin has already shown he is willing to hunt the bargain bin when the fit makes sense, and the Vladimir Tarasenko pickup from Detroit was the latest reminder that Minnesota will kick the tires on a proven name if the price is right. With the Wild still looking to balance immediate help against the realities of the cap, another one of those opportunistic swings could be on the table if the right player becomes available.
The wrinkle is that any move of that size would not be simple, because Minnesota would likely need to move money out first before taking on another sizable contract. Anaheims own cap squeeze could create the opening, and if the Ducks decide they have to reshuffle their roster, the Wild could be positioned to pounce on a veteran winger who would give them a different look in the top six than Tarasenko did. [Read more 🡒]