After a number of injuries and evaluations, the Pittsburgh Penguins needed to act quickly in getting NHL ready talent on the roster.
Prior to placing multiple names on injured reserve and recalling a few others from the AHL, the Penguins announced they signed defenseman Dmitri Samorukov to an NHL contract.
Less than 24 hours after signing the deal, Samorukov is in Pittsburgh taking morning skate ahead of the Thanksgiving Eve matchup with the New York Rangers.
Newly-signed defenseman Dmitri Samorukov is here for the Penguins optional skate.
— Pens Inside Scoop (@PensInsideScoop) November 22, 2023
Other participants: Jarry, Nedeljkovic, Nieto (coming off a maintenance day), Shea, Ludvig, Zohorna, Harkins, and Nylander. Crosby and Smith came out for some individual puck touches beforehand.
While an official move to the NHL roster is yet to be announced, things seem likely as both Chad Ruhwedel and P.O. Joseph will be unable to play and John Ludvig is yet to be lifted from injured reserve.
Samorukov joins the Penguins with only three games of NHL experience under his belt, but loads of AHL time.
The former 2017 Edmonton Oilers draft pick made his NHL debut during the 2021-22 season and played two more games with the St. Louis Blues in 2022-23.
Samorukov joined signed with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins this past summer and has played in 15 games.
With a goal and four assists, the organization seems to like what they see as a viable NHL option.
In parts of five seasons at the AHL level, Samorukov has recorded a total of 55 points.
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