The Penguins placed rookie defenseman Owen Pickering on injured reserve ahead of Pittsburgh’s clash with the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday at PPG Paints Arena for a festive showdown in the final game before the holiday break.
Pickering was injured during the second period of a 3-0 road loss to the New Jersey Devils on Saturday. Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan revealed the 20-year-old defenseman was diagnosed with a concussion.
Appearing in 14 NHL games this season, Pickering has tallied one goal and one assist, while primarily skating on the top defensive pairing with Kris Letang.
To fill Pickering’s roster spot, the Penguins recalled defenseman Nate Clurman from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League. It’s the second time in seven days that Pittsburgh brought Clurman up to the big club. He was recalled last Tuesday and then reassigned to the AHL affiliate one day later.
Clurman was selected in the sixth round by the Colorado Avalanche in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. He appeared in 110 games, registering 21 points, for the Colorado Eagles across four seasons before signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Penguins this offseason. He has appeared in 18 games for the Wilkes-Barre, scoring one goal and adding four assists.
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With Pickering sidelined, newly re-acquired defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph is expected to skate alongside Letang against the Flyers. The Penguins are 5-0-2 in their last seven games against the Flyers and look to extend their active seven-game point streak on Monday night.
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Featured image via Steve Roberts/Imagn Images