Penguins Place Ilya Solovyov On Waivers

According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Pittsburgh Penguins have placed defenseman Ilya Solovyov on waivers. If he clears, Pittsburgh is expected to reassign him to the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

Solovyov is already familiar with the waiver wire. A year ago, the former seventh-round pick was claimed by the Colorado Avalanche from the Calgary Flames after failing to make Calgary’s opening-night roster. Colorado traded him to the Penguins a few months later for Valtteri Puustinen and a 2026 seventh-round pick.

Despite making the Penguins’ opening-night roster for the 2026-27 campaign, he hasn’t played a game yet. After Pittsburgh acquired Spencer Stastney a few days ago, removing Solovyov from the roster became an expectation. In line rushes this morning, Stastney and Solovyov skated as extra defensemen, suggesting the Penguins will likely move forward with Stastney serving as the team’s seventh defenseman.

After the Penguins acquired him from the Avalanche last January, Solovyov arguably played the best hockey of his NHL career. It was a small sample size and relatively low production compared to the rest of the league’s defensemen, but Solovyov registered five assists in 14 games with Pittsburgh down the stretch.

The silver lining for Solovyov is that if the Penguins don’t consider him a part of the solution moving forward, he will have some flexibility next summer. Unless he plays in 35 games for Pittsburgh this year, Solovyov will become a Group VI unrestricted free agent next offseason, giving him the option to find a better opportunity toward NHL playing time.