Pens call up Kuhnhackl, Rust and send down Wilson and Sheary

The Pittsburgh Penguins today announced that they had sent down Scott Wilson and Connor Sheary to the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins and that they had also called up Thomas Kuhnhackl and Bryan Rust. Kevin Porter will remain on the team for now, one would think it is for his penalty kill work and due to Bennett being out short-term. When Bennett returns I would expect Porter to be sent back down.

Connor Sheary initially showed promise with his stint with the Penguins, scoring a goal and an assist in his second game with Crosby against the Bruins. However, other than that he has yet to impact on any following games and has not yet proven himself to be good enough to deserve a longer look. He is only 23 though, so his time in the NHL is not over yet.

Scott Wilson had a much smaller stint with the Penguins having played just four games to Sheary's 10. His first game was against the Blue Jackets on the 21st of December and he recorded his only point, an assist on Phil Kessel's 10th of the season. Like Sheary though Wilson looked a bit lost out there and it makes sense to try new players if they deserve it.

Bryan Rust has played with the Penguins before this season in 2014-15 where he played 14 games and finished with a goal and assist. He had a brief stint earlier in this season appearing in five games but he failed to have an impact before being injured in late October.

Following Rust on the conveyer belt up is Thomas Kuhnhackl, a native German who has struggled with injuries in the previous years. The injuries have affected his development, perhaps the most severe was a season ending shoulder injury in the 2012-13 season. Kuhnhackl spent time in Wheeling rebuilding his game and was rewarded with a full season in the AHL last year scoring 12 goals and 18 assists in 72 games.

Seeing Kuhnhackl rewarded is pleasing and I hope the new players are able to shine.