Not Goodbye, But See You Soon!
It’s sad to say that we won’t see any more of this smiling face (well at least not in Pittsburgh for the time being).
The Pens made their first cuts this afternoon and I have to say some surprised me. In total, thirteen players were cut, eleven were sent to Wilkes Barre-Scranton, and the other two were sent back to Juniors.
Wilkes Barre:
Forwards Brandon DeFazio, Brian Gibbons, Ben Street, Paul Thompson and Geoff Walker;
Defensemen Simon Despres, Alex Grant, Joey Mormina, Philip Samuelsson and Carl Sneep; and Goaltender Patrick Killeen.
Juniors:
Forwards Tom Kuhnhackl (Windsor, Ontario Hockey League) and Dominik Uher (Spokane, Western Hockey League)
I have to say that the demotion of Simon Despres was the most surprising. Despres had an impressive camp last season and was one of the last cuts. Then he completed a stellar season with the Saint John Sea Dogs where he participated in the World Juniors Championship and the Memorial Cup.
Although this is disappointing, training camp goes on and there are still 42 players competing for a limited number of spots.
Players like Despres, who show promise early on, may find themselves in Pittsburgh with the big club soon enough. Unfortunately we know, especially as Pens fans, not a season goes by without an injury or two (or ten).
The rest of the team takes on the Blackhawks tonight coming off a 3-2 win against the Detroit Red Wings. Let the games (and competition) continue!
Black Tie Required 