Penguins' Valtteri Puustinen, Vasily Ponomarev excited for call-up ahead of Calder Cup playoffs
By nature of having spent the majority of this season in the American Hockey League, as compared to last, when he was in the NHL for most of the year, 2024-25 could be framed as disappointing for Valtteri Puustinen.
Ultimately, for the 25-year-old Pittsburgh Penguins winger, becoming a full-time NHLer remains the primary objective.
Especially given that last season, he seemed to take significant steps toward that end, scoring five goals with 15 assists in 52 games.
However, Puustinen, who broke training camp with the Penguins to start the year but was used sparingly through mid-November before being placed on waivers and ultimately assigned to the AHL, is able to view things in a different light.
As opposed to navigating stretches of being a healthy scratch, as well as playing lesser minutes in Pittsburgh, Puustinen found it better for his long-term development to enjoy a larger role in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
“Of course, when I come back for training camp this year, my 100% focus was to play (in the NHL) the whole year and play more this year than last year,” Puustinen said. “But through my first maybe 20 games with Wilkes, this is a good time for me, (because) I can play more there.
“Everybody wants to play (in the NHL), but I want to play more. I think it (doesn’t) help me if I play eight or 10 minutes (with the Penguins) compared to Wilkes, playing 15-16 minutes and more (on the) power play.”
Puustinen, along with fellow wingers Emil Bemstrom and Vasily Ponomarev, was recalled to the NHL Thursday morning.
He arrived in Pittsburgh having scored 16 goals, including a team-high seven on the power play, with 19 assists for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
For the trio, end-of-year opportunities with the Penguins, who enter their final three games of the season having been eliminated from playoff contention, will be forthcoming.
That’s a result of season-ending injuries to wingers Rutger McGroarty, Noel Acciari, Matt Nieto, Tommy Novak and Blake Lizotte, creating holes in the lineup.
Ponomarev, 23, hopes to take advantage of a third brief stint at the NHL this season.
“I just want to show my best playing, enjoy it and show that I deserve to play in the NHL,” said Ponomarev, who’s appeared in four games with the Penguins to date, most recently Feb. 8.
Looking at the year he’s had in the AHL, Ponomarev should be pleased.
His first year in the Penguins organization has seen Ponomarev contribute significantly to the team success of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (37-21-7), which is gearing up for a Calder Cup playoffs run.
At the time of his recall, he was the AHL Penguins’ fourth-leading scorer, with 15 goals and 25 assists through 54 games.
As he prepares to suit up for a handful of NHL contests, Ponomarev is simultaneously excited about rejoining Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, which has six games remaining before the postseason.
“I’m really happy about my season,” Ponomarev said. “Personally, me, and people outside can see what improvement I did there. I’m really happy with where I am right now to get into the (Calder Cup) playoffs because it’s probably why we play in hockey.
“We don’t just want to win the regular season, we want to win the cup in every league. It doesn’t matter where — it’s the same importance as the Stanley Cup and hard to win as any cup in any other sport.”
Puustinen expressed similar sentiments, taking pride in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s strong year, of which he was a significant part.
After helping the NHL Penguins complete their campaign, the services of Bemstrom, Ponomarev and Puustinen will be welcomed back in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
“When (the) season ends here, we have 100% focus on the Calder Cup playoffs with Wilkes,” Puustinen said. “I think we have a really, really good team.”
Note: In addition to providing injury updates on Acciari, Nieto, Novak, Lizotte and McGroarty, coach Mike Sullivan revealed Thursday that defenseman P.O Joseph and forward Phil Tomasino both skated before the Penguins’ practice in Cranberry. Joseph, designated to injured reserve for an unspecified ailment, has missed the last 17 games, while Tomasino (concussion) has been sidelined for the last two.
Justin Guerriero is a TribLive reporter covering the Penguins, Pirates and college sports. A Pittsburgh native, he is a Central Catholic and University of Colorado graduate. He joined the Trib in 2022 after covering the Colorado Buffaloes for Rivals and freelancing for the Denver Post. He can be reached at jguerriero@triblive.com.
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