When in the early stages of NHL training camp, it’s not often wise to read into too much.
There are a lot of players at training camp for the Pittsburgh Penguins this season. Talent is spread out among groups. Players typically get reps with a lot of different people in the earlygoing. When there is an entirely new coaching staff, that means new systems are adapted, and it’s difficult to discern much early on.
But one thing that has remained consistent throughout camp practices – and carried into Monday’s pre-season-opening 2-1 shootout loss against the Montreal Canadiens – is the defensive pairing of prospects Owen Pickering and Harrison Brunicke.
And if folks have been paying attention to the Penguins’ prospect pool within the last calendar year, this very well could be a pairing to keep an eye on as the Penguins move toward the future.
On Monday, Pickering and Brunicke suited up on the third pairing for the Penguins, and they did not disappoint. Brunicke quarterbacked the second power play unit and registered the secondary assist on Tristan Broz’s power play goal in the first period, and Pickering made some key defensive plays throughout the evening.
Head coach Dan Muse was happy with the pairing’s performance.
“That pair… I thought you saw a lot of good things on both sides of the puck,” Muse said. “In the offensive zone, you can see that both guys can get moving a little bit, which creates confusion for the opponent. And there [were] some shifts there where they were really able to do that, some of the shifts where we were able to extend time there in the offensive zone. Also, the puck movement, the breakouts… I think at the beginning of the game, the breakouts were really good, and they were a big part of that.”
Pickering, 21, was selected 21st overall by the Penguins in 2022. He surprised many last season when he earned an unexpected NHL call-up in November after putting on a solid performance to kick off his first full season in professional hockey. The 6-foot-5, 206-pound blueliner registered a goal and three points in 25 games with the big club before being re-assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS) in January.
Pickering has aspirations of remaining on the NHL roster this season for good, and it’s something that was the ultimate goal for him all summer long. The same goes for Brunicke, too.
The 6-foot-3, 202-pound young defenseman turned heads in training camp last season – just 18 years old and fresh off his 44th overall selection in the 2024 NHL Draft – with his top-of-the-line skating ability, hockey smarts, and two-way prowess. His high level of play earned him a stay through the end of training camp, and he may just have gotten that nine-game trial had it not been for the injury situation on the forward front.
Now 19, Brunicke is partaking in a crucial camp for his development, as he wants to avoid the binding assignment back to junior hockey by cracking the NHL roster this time around. And part of what has helped both he and Pickering is that they have seen much of their camp repetitions alongside guys like Sidney Crosby and Ville Koivunen and against guys like Erik Karlsson.
“Me and Owen have spent a lot of time with Sid, Koivy, [Justin] Brazeau, all those guys,” Brunicke said. “So, it’s cool to be a part of that, and we’re learning each day and taking it step-by-step.”
As mentioned earlier, Pickering and Brunicke have been paired together consistently from the onset of camp, and the duo is something that goes back to last season. At the conclusion of his junior season with the Kamloops Blazers – where he put up five goals and 30 points in 41 games – Brunicke was awarded an AHL stint with WBS. In 10 regular season games, he registered two points – he also put up a goal and two points in two AHL playoff games – and he saw some time with Pickering then.
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Pickering’s size, reach, transition game, and shutdown ability complement Brunicke’s ability to activate, skate with the puck, and use his skating ability to create offensive opportunity. But neither of their skillsets are limiting, as each of them have a pretty strong two-way game and are able to both generate chances and stymie opposing breakouts.
Both players alluded to how well they read off of each other, and their off-ice friendship has also led to on-ice chemistry.
“I think we play well together, complement each other,” Pickering said. “We’re also just good friends and understand the other pretty good. So, yeah, we’re having fun.”
Brunicke echoed that sentiment, adding that they are learning from each other as well.
“We’re taking it each day, just learning and growing together,” Brunicke said. “So, it’s been a lot of fun. We’re creating some chemistry here, and we’ll look to keep progressing.”
Of course, the path to the NHL roster for both of them isn’t exactly going to be easy. The Penguins have a lot of defensemen on both sides vying for few spots, and even if GM and POHO Kyle Dubas’s comments on youth earning roster spots are to be taken at face value, there’s still a lot of veteran movement that would have to happen in order for both of them to make the roster.
In an ideal world, though, they both would. This is a pairing that could very well be a large part of the Penguins’ future and their hopes of contending for another Stanley Cup championship, and playing at the NHL level now may just be what is best for their development moving forward. Pickering’s left side is a bit more open a battle than Brunicke’s right, but – either way – they want to make decisions difficult for Penguins’ brass when final roster cuts are being made.
And, for Pickering, it all comes down to staying within himself and putting his best foot forward.
“I feel good,” he said. “I’m just trying to compete and, hopefully, make the team.”
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