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There will be a lot of new faces when the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins open training camp at the Toyota Sportsplex on Saturday, including many who spent time in Wheeling last season, a few who appeared with the Penguins and one who was a first-round draft pick in 2007.
Defenseman Nick Petrecki was taken in the first round by San Jose and joins a training camp roster consisting of 13 forwards, seven blueliners and goaltenders Casey DeSmith and Brian Foster. Of the group, those signed to AHL deals include last season’s captain Tom Kostopoulos, Ty Loney, John McCarron, Shavertown’s Patrick McGrath, Carter Rowney, Clark Seymour, Adam Krause and Foster.
Petrecki joins a blueline corps that will get crowded as more players arrive from Pittsburgh, but for now, he’s the most experienced of the group with 310 AHL games and one NHL game with San Jose. He posted more than 100 penalty minutes in four of his six AHL seasons, split between Worcester and Rochester.
Kostopoulos is easily the veteran of the entire field with 630 NHL games and 16 pro seasons under his belt. Rowney, who has sat out Pittsburgh’s first days of training camp with an injury, scored 10 goals in 63 games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last season.
Other players who suited up for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last year include Sahir Gill (12 games), Paul Cianfrini (3), Ryan Parent (2 games in the playoffs), Seymour (12) and McGrath (2).
New head coach Mike Sullivan said he expects a competitive camp with roster spots at a premium.
“The reality is every time a player puts his skates on he’s making an impression of some sort. This is a competitive organization, expectations are high and it’s not an easy roster to crack,” Sullivan said. “But nothing’s ever etched in stone and opportunity does present itself. The key is to be prepared for it.”
Sullivan has said he expects to open the season with eight defensemen, like Pittsburgh, and the preseason games will sort out who makes the roster.
Players will hit the ice at 10:30 a.m., Saturday through Tuesday, before hosting Lehigh Valley for the first preseason game on Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. at the Mohegan Sun Arena.
All practices at the Toyota Sportsplex are open to the public.