When the Penguins opened training camp on September 18, they invited 69 players. After some roster cuts and options, that number is now down to 50, and it is shrinking by the day until the season opens on Oct. 9 against the New York Rangers.
But there is one young player who – somewhat unexpectedly – finds himself in the mix for a roster spot during the late stages of training camp.
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Defenseman Harrison Brunicke – the Penguins’ 44th overall pick in 2024 – has been a pleasant surprise during training camp. He is the sole junior player left on the training camp roster, and he will stick around for at least one more night to take on Detroit in a preseason rematch of Monday’s game.
“For me, the biggest thing is just taking advantage of being here,” Brunicke said. “It’s obviously a great staff, and there’s great players to learn from.”
One of those players is veteran defenseman Marcus Pettersson, who Brunicke was paired with on Sunday against Ottawa and will be again tonight.
“I see how calm he is with the puck,” Brunicke said. “He knows those little subtle details that maybe not all the average guys would notice. So he just makes it really easy for me. He’s very talkative, communicates well, so I enjoy playing with him, and I’m just going to learn even more from his game.”
And Pettersson is taking notice of his young defense partner’s game as well.
“He’s a really good player,” Pettersson said of Brunicke. “He’s not scared out there, and he’s not going to shy away from the puck or hide himself out there. And I think that says a lot about the young player that he is.”
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Typically, it is evident when a player is junior-level. You can see it in their skating, in their reads, in their inability to keep up with the pace of play, and more – but none of that is true for the 6-foot-3, 195-pound Brunicke, who registered 10 goals and 21 points in 49 games with the Kamloops Blazers of the WHL last season.
He looks comfortable, calm, and collected. If someone didn’t know he was a junior-level player, and they watched him play on Sunday against Ottawa’s NHL lineup in Sudbury, he’d look just like everybody else out there.
And that’s a good thing, both for him and for the Penguins. It means he is transitioning and learning his position sooner and better than he was expected to, which is part of the reason why he’s earned an extended look in training camp.
While head coach Mike Sullivan said there are still some things for Brunicke to work on – such as stick details, making reads inside the dots, and positioning himself off of the offensive blue line – they’re very encouraged by his ability to join the rush, his skating, his reach, and his willingness to learn new ways to improve his game.
“When he sits with [defensive coach David Quinn] and has some one-on-one and watches video, we can see what he’s watching with the coaching staff, and we can see that application and that learning process take place with the next game, the next practice, or whatever it may be,” Sullivan said.
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He continued: “The aptitiude that he’s shown since he’s been here is really encouraging because it suggests to us that this is a guy who’s going to improve and get better through the process. So that’s one of the reasons why we’ve given him the looks that we’ve given him. He’s certainly earned them through his performance.”
Between his impressive performance and Erik Karlsson’s uncertain injury status, it remains to be seen whether he earns an even more extended look; perhaps, in the form of a nine-game “trial run.”
Players who are eligible for junior hockey and under the age of 20 can play in nine NHL regular season games without consequence to their entry-level contract. If they play 10 games, the first season of their ELC kicks in, and they become ineligible to be sent back to juniors.
With the logjam of defensemen in front of Brunicke on the depth chart and his waiver exemption, this is unlikely. However, he’s still in Pittsburgh, and he’s still playing in preseason games alongside a top-four NHL defenseman and in place of an injured future Hall-of-Famer – so if he continues to show he belongs in the league tonight against Detroit, anything is possible.
Regardless, Brunicke is happy to get the experience and continues to get better every day.
“I’m taking it day by day here and doing whatever I can to just be the best version of myself,” he said. “Whether that’s recovering at the rink on off days or just trying new things in practice, I’m learning new things every single day. I’ve just gotta get that one percent better each day.”
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