We’ve got some roster moves in response to an injury that occurred in the Stars game the other night.
The Penguins have placed goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic on injured reserve and re-assigned forward Radim Zohorna to the @WBSPenguins.
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 25, 2023
Goaltender Magnus Hellberg and forward Corey Andonovski have been recalled from WBS. pic.twitter.com/Lh0KIpVVeC
Mike Sullivan confirmed that goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic, who suffered a lower-body injury in Tuesday's game versus Dallas, is on long-term injured reserve - which means he has to miss a minimum of 10 games and 24 days. "He's week-to-week," Sullivan said.
— Pens Inside Scoop (@PensInsideScoop) October 26, 2023
Nedeljkovic was dinged up enough to where he has been placed on injured reserve. This is not great news for Tristan Jarry’s workload moving forward. Mike Sullivan has been known to run Jarry out there for more starts than he probably should and I can’t help but think it has led to his body breaking down leading to the injuries he has had. No offense to Magnus Hellberg, I don’t think Mike Sullivan is going to trust him. Especially, considering the slide the Penguins are on and how they really need to pick up some points. I feel like we are going to have a run of Jarry starts.
Fear not, the demotion of Radim Zohorna was not performance related. He was being used to manipulate the LTIR cap space. He is already back up with the team today and joining him will be Vinny Hinostroza.
The Penguins have recalled forwards Vinnie Hinostroza and Radim Zohorna from the @WBSPenguins and re-assigned forward Corey Andonovski to WBS. pic.twitter.com/CmoAtmZAch
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 26, 2023
I like the idea of Vinnie Hinostroza being called up because it signals Mike Sullivan is not happy with the current output of the bottom six forwards. I personally would have selected Valtteri Puustinen or Alex Nylander considering the largest issue plaguing the team is their depth offense. None of the options are going to magically solve the overall structural problems the Penguins have. I would like it if the choices tried to address the issues harming the team the most.
Coach Sullivan on Hinostroza: "The reason Vinnie got called up was because he was playing the best. That was a conversation we had yesterday. He is en route today, he will take warmup, and he will more than likely not play."
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 26, 2023
The Penguins are up against it tonight. They are playing one of the best teams in the league and they are currently struggling to produce tangible offense. A 2-5 record is starting them right in the face. There is no option other than to put up a playoff caliber performance this evening. Even then, they might find themselves on the wrong end of a result. This is the problem with losing to the Blackhawks and Blues. A loss tonight is super deflating even if you know the opponent is very good. You win those other two games and it is easier to shrug your shoulders and move on. Losing games to great teams while playing good can sometimes build confidence. I don’t think the Penguins are in a place where that is a realistic outcome. A loss will be a loss tonight. They are digging themselves to deep of a hole.
Going up against Jarry tonight will be Alexander Georgiev and to this point he has been… very good
🥅: Alexandar Georgiev (COL) ðŸ…¿ï¸ will likely start Thursday @ PIT.
— Daily Faceoff - Fantasy (@DFOFantasy) October 26, 2023
6-0-0 | 1.98 GAA | .930 SV% | 1 SO https://t.co/Ok0rljRLS8
Would be cool to get both a bottom six goal and a power play goal tonight.
Thanks for reading!