On Nov. 25, 2024, the Pittsburgh Penguins acquired Philip Tomasino from the Nashville Predators. The former 24th pick from the 2019 Draft is just the latest first-round selection to depart the organization in the past two years.
Pittsburgh fans have embraced the 23-year-old from Mississauga, Ontario, with open arms. For those who didn’t know much about Tomasino, here are five interesting things to learn about the newest member of the Penguins.
Named to AHL All-Rookie Team
During the 2020-21 AHL season, Tomasino made his AHL debut with the Chicago Wolves. In 29 games, he scored 13 goals with 32 points while finishing the campaign with a plus-20 rating.
He tied for the team lead in scoring with Tommy Novak while compiling the third most penalty minutes with 43.
Interestingly, Tomasino played with several current NHLers: Tanner Jeannot, Morgan Geekie, Seth Jarvis, Luke Evangelista, Connor Ingram, and Petr Mrazek.
After the season, Tomasino scored AHL All-Rookie Team honors.
First NHL Goals Against Vezina Trophy Winners & Finalists
Tomasino made his NHL debut on Oct. 14, 2021, with the Predators against the Seattle Kraken. He netted his first career goal against Vezina Trophy winner Igor Shesterkin in his second game on Oct. 21, 2021.
Two nights later, Tomasino scored his second goal against two-time Vezina winner Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets. His third goal came against Thatcher Demko, a former Vezina finalist.
Out of his 25 career goals at this time, Tomasino has lit the lamp against several Vezina-caliber netminders, including Marc-Andre Fleury and Jonathan Quick, and several William M. Jennings winners like Thomas Greiss and Jeremy Swayman.
15th Highest Scorer From Draft Class
The Predators drafted Tomasino with the 24th pick in the 2019 Draft. That year’s top picks included Jack Hughes, Kaapo Kakko, Kirby Dach, and Bowen Byram.
Other names drafted before Tomasino include Philip Broberg, Trevor Zegras, Spencer Knight, Cole Caufield, Alex Newhook, and Samuel Poulin.
Of the 92 picks from the 2019 Draft class to skate in the NHL, Tomasino is tied with Peyton Krebs and Shane Pinto with 73 points, the 15th most. Moreover, he’s just one of 23 skaters to score over 20 goals in the league.
Remains Pointless Against Only Four NHL Clubs
Despite playing only 162 games over the past four seasons, Tomasino has been busy scoring against all opponents.
The 23-year-old center has 25 goals, 48 points, and 73 points and has enjoyed playing the Chicago Blackhawks, Minnesota Wild, San Jose Sharks, and Winnipeg Jets, collecting five points against each club.
Of all 32 teams, Tomasino is pointless against only four clubs: the Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Utah Hockey Club, and, of course, the Predators.
Almost a Point-Per-Game Player in the AHL
After a brilliant four seasons in the OHL with the Niagara Ice Dogs and Oshawa Generals, Tomasino made his AHL debut in 2020-21 with the Wolves. He had 32 points in 29 games as a rookie before earning a permanent role with the Predators in 2021-22.
These are the kind of chances that Philip Tomasino had regularly with the #Preds but he’d either fire wide of the net or pull the puck & hit the goalie right in the chest
Playing in Milwaukee has done him some good — 6 goals & 11 points in 15 gamespic.twitter.com/W4l8X1WFo2
— Michael Gallagher (@MGsports_) March 20, 2024
In 2022-23, he split time between the NHL and AHL, scoring 32 points in 38 games in the minors. The following season saw a repeat pattern, with Tomasino scoring 18 points in 22 games with the Milwaukee Admirals.
His career points-per-game average is 0.45 at the NHL level, but it’s more than double at 0.92 in the AHL. Since joining the Penguins, Tomasino is already producing above his NHL average, scoring at a 0.66 pace in three games.
