The Penguins currently find themselves in a situation where top prospect Tristan Jarry is backing up in the NHL instead of playing a starting role in the minors. Generally, teams would rather see a young and waiver-exempt netminder play as many games as possible in the AHL over making 15-20 appearances in the NHL. Accordingly, it has been expected that GM Jim Rutherford would be on the lookout for more of a veteran backup that could push Jarry back to the minors.
However, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette suggests that while Rutherford is keeping tabs on what’s out there, he’s not actively pursuing another goalie at the moment. Jarry is off to a decent start with the Penguins this season so it’s not as if his performance is dictating that they need to make a move just yet. As the weeks progress though, that could change if he’s only starting once every four or five games.
Elsewhere in the East:
- The Sabres have assigned center Evan Rodrigues to Rochester of the AHL, per the AHL’s Transactions page. This means that he has been activated off season-opening injury reserve. He suffered a hand injury early in the preseason against Toronto. Although he has been sent down, there’s a decent change Rodrigues will factor into Buffalo’s plans before too long as he played in 30 games with them last season, averaging just shy of 13 minutes per game.
- Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews will be a game-time decision for Saturday’s game in Montreal, notes Mark Zwolinski of the Toronto Star. Matthews has missed the last four games with a lower-body injury although he did participate in his second practice of the week earlier today. Even if he is cleared to return, the 20-year-old acknowledged that his conditioning may not be back where it was right away before he suffered the injury.
- Although the Blue Jackets are struggling offensively at the moment, it doesn’t appear like winger Sonny Milano is in line for more playing time just yet. Head coach John Tortorella told Steve Gorten of the Columbus Dispatch that Milano needs to play better in his own end before he can be trusted with more playing time even though he sits tied for second on the team in goals with five.