Penguins recall former first-round pick, one other

Earlier Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Penguins placed both forward Rickard Rakell and defenseman Chad Ruhwedel and have been busy seeking their replacements for the foreseeable future. After signing defenseman Dmitri Samorukov a few hours ago, the team announced it would be recalling forward Alexander Nylander and Jansen Harkins from its AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

Now in his third season with the organization, Nylander has wholly failed to live up to being the eighth overall selection of the 2016 NHL Draft. Playing in 93 games over the course of his career between the Penguins, Chicago Blackhawks, and Buffalo Sabres, Nylander has tallied 14 goals and 20 assists in total.

Skating as almost an entirely different player in the AHL, however, Nylander has been one of the most consistent offensive threats over the last six years. In 298 games played, Nylander has put up 82 goals and 104 assists, averaging nearly a point per game last season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Harkins, on the other hand, was brought into the Penguins organization providing a much different set of skills. Joining the team via waivers shortly before the beginning of the 2023-24 season, Harkins’ ability to play important minutes in the bottom six was the main factor in Pittsburgh putting in a claim.

Nevertheless, his first few games for the Penguins would not suffice, as the team would put him back on waivers only 17 days later as he failed to score a point in four games played. Much like Nylander, Harkins is a much-improved player in the AHL, scoring four goals and five assists for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton since his demotion in mid-October.