Click here to subscribe today or Login.
At the time, Teddy Blueger was dismayed about returning to the minors.
The center had finally made his NHL debut at the end of last January, scoring a goal on his first career shot with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
A month later, though, he found himself back with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton — in part because Pittsburgh needed to recall a defenseman, and Blueger could be sent down without risk of being lost on waivers.
“To be honest, I was hoping to stick around and stay up there,” Blueger said after a Feb. 25 practice at Toyota SportsPlex. “For the most part I played well but came up a bit short of my end goal (of staying in the NHL).”
That time has likely come.
Blueger made it back to the big club a few days later and stayed there the rest of the season. On Tuesday, he finalized a new two-year contract with the Penguins worth $750,000 annually. It is a one-way deal, meaning that even if he were to somehow end up in the AHL at any point, he would still be paid that NHL salary.
But, more than likely, he has played his final game for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
Something of a spare part last season in Pittsburgh, Blueger will now enter training camp as the heavy favorite to center the Penguins’ fourth line with the retirement of popular veteran Matt Cullen.
“Teddy is a perfect role model for younger players coming into the league,” Pittsburgh assistant general manager Bill Guerin said through the team. “When you watch a guy with his work ethic, determination and ability to trust the process of going through the proper steps to get to the NHL, you have a great example for younger players.”
Blueger said last season that process, however, wasn’t always easy, especially as he began to blossom as one of the AHL’s top scorers at age 24.
On Jan. 26, he scored in overtime to give Wilkes-Barre/Scranton a 5-4 win over Binghamton. That was his 21st goal of the season, a total that ended up being second most on the Penguins despite not playing with the team in the final three months of the season.
Ryan Haggerty finished with 23 goals in 68 games to lead the team. Blueger scored his 21 in just 45 games to go with 18 assists for 39 points. Those 21 goals also tied a career-high as a pro in a single season.
Indeed, it’s easy to point at Blueger’s departure as a key factor in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s storied streak of playoff appearances coming to an end.
A second-round draft pick of the Penguins in 2012, the native of Latvia, Blueger played four college seasons at Minnesota State before making his pro debut with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in 2016.
He became a mainstay with the AHL Penguins over the next three seasons, racking up 115 points (49 goals, 66 assists) in 179 games.
Blueger’s NHL debut came in Pittsburgh on Feb. 1 when he opened the scoring just 3:19 into a game with the Ottawa Senators. He ended up appearing in 28 games, collecting 10 points (six goals, four assists) and dressed for one playoff game.
Now, his role is set to grow.
“Teddy came to us with great expectations, and he’s worked hard to meet each one,” Guerin said. “He has great hockey sense, he loves to compete and he’s a true professional.”
WBS adds new forward
A few hours after Blueger inked his deal with Pittsburgh, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton added to the pool of forwards hoping to replace his production.
The Penguins announced the signing of ECHL standout Myles Powell to an AHL contract for the 2019-20 season.
In his first full season as a pro, Powell was selected to the ECHL’s All-Rookie team, leading that league in rookie scoring with 66 points (31 goals, 35 assists) in 57 games for the Cincinnati Cyclones.
A team captain in college while playing four years at RIT, Powell was a teammate of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton defenseman Matt Abt.
After his senior season, Powell stayed in Rochester to sign a tryout deal with the Americans in 2018. He was able to earn an AHL deal with the Amerks for 2018-19, spending much of the season down with the Cyclones, the team’s ECHL affiliate.
Powell, 24, will be looking to record his first AHL point this season, having appeared in 11 games over the last two years with Rochester. He also has put up 10 points in 15 career ECHL playoff games.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton now has a projected 20 forwards under contract to work with for the start of the AHL season, including Adam Johnson, who signed his new deal with Pittsburgh on Friday.