An injury to Kaeden Korczak has opened the door for the Penguins’ first recall of the season, bringing defenseman Jake Livanavage up from Wilkes-Barre.
Korczak is now in the day-to-day range, and Livanavage’s promotion gives the club an extra option on the blue line while the situation sorts itself out. The left-shot defenseman has been one of Wilkes-Barre’s most productive players this season, leading the team’s defensemen with eight points, including two goals and six assists, in nine AHL games. Whether he’s up strictly as insurance or in line for actual NHL minutes is still unclear, but his arrival leaves the Penguins with seven healthy defensemen aside from Korczak and likely means either Livanavage or Ilya Solovyov will be in the lineup while Korczak is out.
Justin Brazeau is also set to get back into action tonight, and he worked yesterday with Ville Koivunen and Hendrix Lapierre. Coach Dan Muse said Brazeau has been cleared to play in the NHL after a two-game conditioning assignment in the AHL, where he picked up an assist.
Brazeau’s return comes at a useful moment, especially with Elmer Soderblom’s injury now listed as week-to-week after further evaluation. It also gives the Penguins 13 forwards on the roster, though Evgeni Malkin missed practice yesterday with a day-to-day injury and remains uncertain for tonight’s game against Vegas.
Tonight begins a demanding stretch for the Penguins, who are set to play four games in the next six days. They haven’t used the same lineup of 18 skaters and starting goalie in back-to-back games, and that pattern looks likely to continue at least for now with Brazeau ready to make his season debut and Korczak and Malkin both dealing with injury uncertainty.
In Other News...
Penguins Add To Blue Line Uncertainty Before Tough Road Stretch
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton made another move on its blue line, recalling defenseman David Breazeale from the Florida Everblades as the organization continues to sort through its depth. Breazeale had been with Pittsburghs ECHL affiliate after appearing in four games for Florida this season, and he is no stranger to the Penguins system after spending time with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last year.
The timing matters with a tough road stretch coming up, and the recall adds another layer of uncertainty to a defense corps that is already being watched closely. Along with the personnel move, the Penguins also rolled out upcoming game schedules and ticket information, but the bigger question is how this latest shuffle affects the lineup once the team gets back on the ice. [Read more 🡒]
Penguins Need Answers Fast As Another Lineup Shakeup Hits
The Penguins are back at PPG Paints Arena on a night that already feels like a test case for a team still searching for answers. They enter against the Vegas Golden Knights with a difficult record and another round of lineup uncertainty hanging over them, while Vegas arrives off a shootout loss to the Boston Bruins and dealing with its own recent injury-related changes. Pittsburgh will also unveil its Hometown Remix jerseys, adding a little pageantry to a game that otherwise has plenty of pressure attached to it.
In goal, the Penguins have confirmed Arturs Silovs as the starter, a notable call as they try to steady things in net and stop the skid from getting any deeper. Vegas is expected to go with Adin Hill, leaving both sides to navigate a matchup shaped as much by availability as by form. For Pittsburgh, the bigger issue is whether the latest shakeup can produce a cleaner performance before the standings start to tighten even more. [Read more 🡒]
Penguins Rough Start Is Forcing A Roster Debate Pittsburgh Feared
The Penguins first 14 games have already turned into the kind of early-season grind that exposes every roster flaw, and this one has been no exception. With only 12 points in the bank, Pittsburgh has spent much of the opening stretch trying to find the right balance between competing now and developing for later, even as general manager Kyle Dubas heavy investment in forwards has created a crowded depth chart that makes it harder to keep young players in the lineup.
There have been some encouraging signs, with Evgeni Malkin among the players holding up reasonably well, but the uneven production around him has only sharpened the sense that something may need to give. Egor Chinakhov has not given the club the kind of lift it hoped for, and with the standings already looking shaky, the Penguins are drifting toward the sort of roster conversation Pittsburgh expected to avoid this early in the season. [Read more 🡒]