Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan is aware that Joel Blomqvist, his young rookie goaltender, didn’t have the best showing on Sunday in a 5-3 loss to the New York Rangers.
Blomqvist – who was recalled on Jan. 16 after Tristan Jarry was waived by the team and re-assigned to the AHL – surrendered four goals on 13 shots and was off his angle all night long, struggling with rebound control and getting beat high-glove three times. He has also only started four NHL games since Jan. 16, which doesn’t help matters.
Even though his rookie netminder had a bad game, Sullivan – like others in the organization – understand that nights like Sunday are going to happen as part of his development process.
“He’s very athletic,” Sullivan said. “We’re really excited about this guy. But he’s a young goaltender going through a learning process here. So, the challenge is on us as a coaching staff to help him.”
#LetsGoPens head coach Mike Sullivan on rookie goaltender Joel Blomqvist:
“He’s very athletic. We’re really excited about this guy. But he’s a young goaltender, and he’s going through a learning process here. So, the challenge is on us as a coaching staff to help him.”
— Kelsey Surmacz (@kelsey_surmacz4) February 23, 2025
Like Blomqvist, there are so many young players who come up from the AHL and fail to make an impression right away. Forward prospect Rutger McGroarty played three NHL games to start the season, registered zero points, and was relatively invisible. Forward prospect Vasily Ponomarev – known for his two-way play – has played four total games at the NHL level this season and has zero points, and he has made some rookie mistakes that can be chalked up to the NHL speed game.
Even rookie defenseman Owen Pickering – who spent a good portion of the season at the NHL level after impressing initially – was sent back down to the AHL for further development after enduring some struggles over a longer stretch.
No, these guys aren’t “busts.” No, they’re not “career-AHLers.”
They’re prospects. And – just like they do at the AHL level – prospects need ample time to develop at the NHL level, too.
There’s a broad assumption that development simply ends once a player gets the call to the highest level of their respective sport. But this is, simply put, so far from the truth. There is still a development process that needs to take place – and that will take some time and patience – once a player reaches the highest level.
PSA:
“Development” doesn’t end when a young player makes it to the highest level in their respective sport.
There’s still a lot of development that has to take place at that high level until said young player reaches their peak potential.
Expecting too much too soon isn’t fair
— Kelsey Surmacz (@kelsey_surmacz4) February 24, 2025
So, if Blomqvist isn’t a .910-plus save percentage goaltender right off the bat? And McGroarty isn’t a 20-goal scorer right off the bat? And Ponomarev isn’t a two-way third-line center right off the bat? And Pickering isn’t a steady, consistent top-four defenseman right off the bat?
That’s okay. And that’s not a bad thing at all.
Many want to condemn young players in small sample sizes. The truth is that it sometimes takes a year or two – often more – of playing time at the NHL level for a young player to start reaching their potential. So judging them based on a handful of games – or even a rookie season’s worth of games – isn’t fair to the player.
Take three examples, for instance. Marc-Andre Fleury – who is now second all-time in wins among NHL goaltenders and helped lead the Penguins to three Stanley Cup championships – didn’t have a save percentage above .900 until his third season, when the Penguins made the playoffs for the first time in the Crosby era.
Defenseman Marcus Pettersson – recently traded to the Vancouver Canucks for a package involving a first-round pick – took six NHL seasons, and three with the Penguins, to finally break out as a shutdown top-four defenseman. The patience in his development process led him to be the most coveted defenseman before the 2025 NHL trade deadline and resulted in a six-year, $33 million contract extension with the Canucks.
Vancouver Canucks General Manager Patrik Allvin announced today that the club has agreed to terms with defenceman Marcus Pettersson on a six-year contract extension with a $5.5M AAV. pic.twitter.com/cyafoUM5Xg
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) February 6, 2025
Forward Bryan Rust started out the first four seasons of his NHL career as a third- and fourth-line checking player, and he was a college player, so he was 22 when he first saw the NHL. It wasn’t until his age 27 season that he broke out for more than 20 goals, and he’s now a near-point-per-game player, a perennial 20-goal scorer, and a top-six winger.
The point is this: There is more talent at the AHL level for the Penguins than there has been in a long time. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is a top-five team in terms of points percentage in the AHL, and they are chasing their first Calder Cup appearance since 2007-08 and the first Calder Cup championship in team history.
These guys are winning together. They’re growing together. And they’ll need even more time to grow together once they sporadically arrive in the NHL on a more consistent basis.
Not every prospect is going to pan out. But several should. And – for a team in the Penguins’ situation where getting younger is the priority – they need to be given the leeway, the time, and the space while playing at the NHL level to prove whether or not they can become an impact player.
So exercise some patience with these guys. The wait will be worth it.
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