Former Penguins Defenseman On Waivers; Reunion Makes Sense?

The Pittsburgh Penguins have two healthy right-handed defensemen on the NHL roster and only one with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Now, there is a former Penguins defenseman on waivers who could provide some depth and sheltered minutes at the NHL level.

Ty Smith is on waivers and is set to clear Sunday at 2 p.m. EST.

The Carolina Hurricanes waived Smith, 24, on Saturday, as they utilized the offensively minded D-man as depth. He has played only eight NHL games as Carolina shuffled him back and forth between the NHL and AHL. However, since he spent more than 30 days on the NHL roster since he last cleared waivers, he must do so again to report to the Chicago Wolves of the AHL.

In eight games, Smith has one goal and one assist.

The Penguins traded Smith in the Jake Guentzel trade last March, but Smith remained with the WBS Penguins because Carolina didn’t have an exclusive deal with an AHL club. As Carolina rectified that situation with Chicago, they signed Smith to a two-way deal with a $775,000 deal.

Smith played nine games for the Penguins in 2022-23 after the team acquired him in an offseason deal to move John Marino. Smith notched four points (1-3-4) in those nine games.

However, the knocks on Smith are below-average skating and a tendency to get lost in the defensive zone. However, Jack St. Ivany was re-assigned to WBS because of performance issues and remains out of the AHL lineup with an injury. The other right-handed option in the Penguins organization is Mac Hollowell, 26, who has just six games of NHL experience and none in the last two seasons.

For now, it would surely seem to make sense, even if it is a short-term acquisition and the Penguins try to slip him through waivers shortly thereafter. Having a right-hander would be advantageous, even if it’s to sit in the press box while P.O Joseph adequately holds down the spot.