Penguins forward prospect Cooper Foster’s long journey continues
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The Sault Ste. Marie Airport is a modest facility residing on a chunk of Ontario that juts out into the eastern end of Lake Superior, right where the St. Mary’s River begins.
Three carriers operate out of the strip: Air Canada Express, Porter and the vividly dubbed Bearskin Airlines.
None flies to Pittsburgh.
So while getting drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins is a remarkable accomplishment, it can present some logistical challenges.
That was the case for forward Cooper Foster after the Penguins chose him in the sixth round (No. 174 overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft.
He had to get from Sault Ste. Marie to Western Pennsylvania — Cranberry, specifically — to participate in the Penguins’ development camp with little warning about 12 months ago.
“Last year, right after the draft, I got a call that they wanted me to come down right away,” Foster said earlier this week. “There’s no flights available, so my parents had to drive me that night to Detroit (approximately five-and-a-half hours away). Then I had to fly out at like 6 in the morning out of Detroit the next morning. It was a long road here, but I’m glad I got here.”
Getting home was a much longer affair.
“After the (development) camp last year, my (return) flight got canceled,” Foster said. “I had to drive back with (Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins forward) Avery Hayes back to his house in Detroit (approximately four hours from Cranberry). Then my parents had to come pick me up in Detroit and drive me back home.
“This year, we just got a flight out of Toronto. It wasn’t as bad as last year.”
Foster had a fairly respectable year in the junior ranks during the 2023-24 campaign. Skating for the Ottawa 67s of the Ontario Hockey League, Foster was third on the team in scoring with 52 points (21 goals, 31 assists) in 58 games.
COOPER FOSTER BUZZER BEATER OTW! ????#NHLDraft-eligible defenceman Henry Mews sets up the @penguins prospect for the game-winner with just 2.5 seconds remaining! ⏰@Ottawa67sHockey | #LetsGoPens pic.twitter.com/8dN2rFcos5
— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) November 25, 2023
“I thought it went pretty well,” the 19-year-old left-hander said at the Penguins’ development camp earlier this week. “A second-round exit (from the playoffs) wasn’t the plan for our team, but I thought I had a pretty solid year. Started off really good. Had a little cold spot after Christmas.
“Defensively, I thought I was better. I thought I could play in any role. I played power play, penalty kill, five-on-five quite a bit. I thought I did pretty good. I thought I improved in every area in my game.”
Despite appearing in four fewer regular-season contests than the previous season, Foster reached the 20-goal mark for the first time in his junior career.
But he suggested he wasn’t satisfied with breaking that barrier.
Or fixated on it.
“I wish I could have got more, honestly,” Foster said. “I’m pitching for 30, but I’m not really too focused on goals. Just trying to play my best out there, give my all and play both sides of the game.”
There’s a level of malleability to Foster’s game that intrigues educated observers.
“He’s a good, smart two-way forward that has the ability to create offense and defend,” Penguins director of player development Tom Kostopoulos said. “He’s very versatile. That’s one of the things that coaches really enjoy about him. They use him in different ways, they can play him on both wings, they can play him at center, they can play him on both sides of special teams. He’s got to keep working on his consistency. That intensity, there’s times he plays intense, there’s times where it comes and goes.
“Just finding that level of consistency for him will be big.”
Foster found himself in Northeastern Pennsylvania this past spring when he joined Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on an American Hockey League amateur tryout contract. While he did not appear in any contests for that team, getting exposed to the professional experience was significant to Foster.
“It was really cool to see how the AHL works,” Foster said. “How dialed in all of those guys are for every practice and everything they do with their life in hockey. It was a great experience. Really fast-paced practices. It was hard work. Lots of work off the skates. It was really good for me.”
Foster (6-foot, 187 pounds) likely will return to Ottawa next season. The Penguins have until July 1, 2025, to extend a contract to him to retain his NHL rights.
He realizes he still has a little further to go to make that happen.
“Overall, I thought I was pretty good (in 2023-24) but definitely some room for improvement next year,” Foster said. “I’m hoping to take a stride.”