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On Thursday night against the New York Islanders, Pittsburgh Penguins' rookie defenseman Harrison Brunicke became the first teenager to score a goal for the Penguins since Daniel Sprong in 2015.

On the surface, this doesn’t seem all that crazy. After all, teenagers playing in the NHL, period, is a bit of a rarity, and it’s something that certainly doesn’t happen on a yearly basis for most teams. But when considering the tendency of the Penguins to have largely favored veterans for a large chunk of the last decade, true youth populating the roster seemed like something that happened a lifetime ago.

This season, things are different.

Of course, there are a few reasons for that. It’s important to distinguish the fact that - prior to the 2025-26 season - the Penguins had simply lacked legitimate youth talent in their system for a long while. Years of winning championships, 16 consecutive postseason appearances, and going all-in at the trade deadline does that to an organization. 

But because Pittsburgh has missed the playoffs for three consecutive seasons, they have already shifted into rebuild mode, and they’re focused on collecting high-value assets and infusing talent into their system. As a result, there are better young players and, therefore, more legitimate opportunities for those young players - such as Brunicke and 18-year-old center Ben Kindel - to populate the NHL roster. 

However, the mere existence of young players isn’t the only factor. New head coach Dan Muse - hired this summer - along with the rest of his staff that is focused on development, is also giving the kids some runway to show what they can do at the NHL level. That kind of leeway wasn’t as easy for former head coach Mike Sullivan and his staff to grant while the organization was still prioritizing making the playoffs.

The prevailing sentiment heading into this season was that the Penguins would likely be a pretty far cry from playoff contention. Yet - two games into the 2025-26 season - something about this team simply feels different. Feels rejuvenated. Energized.

Now, getting too far ahead of anything would be foolish. To declare the Penguins a playoff hopeful after two regular season games is unrealistic, especially since most people have them finishing in at least the bottom-10 this season. On top of that, GM and POHO Kyle Dubas himself said at the end of the 2024-25 season that the Penguins making the playoffs this season would be “an accomplishment.”

That said, there is a certain energy - and structure - around this team that has been lacking in recent years. The team is playing faster. Smarter. Tighter. More risk-averse. In the two games so far this season - both wins against each team from New York - they were the better team in the final 20 minutes of play, generally doing a good job of limiting opposing chances, controlling play, and shutting things down, as they haven’t allowed a third-period goal. 

And it’s not as if the youth on their team is sitting back and letting the veterans do all the work. Yes, Evgeni Malkin has five points in two games. Justin Brazeau has three goals in two games. Sidney Crosby has a goal and an assist as well. 

But Kindel has been driving play on the third line, both in the offensive zone and in his own zone. The work of his line led to Brunicke’s goal on Thursday, and Brunicke himself has been quarterbacking the second power play unit and helping to generate offense in transition and off the rush. 

Filip Hallander has six points in six games dating back to the pre-season. Ville Koivunen does not have a point yet, but fans and the organization got a glimpse of what Koivunen and Rutger McGroarty - currently on injured reserve - are capable of at the end of last season. 

The kids are providing a spark and an energy that this team has desperately needed. They have, so far, proven capable of playing with NHL competition, even if there are some bumps along the way with their development and learning curve. They have given a dead-in-the-water team some new life - a new identity - and it’s translating into team performance. 

Muse said that the goal of the coaching staff - and the biggest thing that they want to see out of this 23-man unit - is for the team to play “connected.” And, so far, that’s exactly what has happened. They have played well within structure, they have developed chemistry in a short period of time, and they have shown that they have a lot to play for, even if outside noise says otherwise.

That "connectedness" is, in essence, their identity. And the mix of youth and experience on the roster is cultivating a perfect environment for that identity to thrive.

There is no telling how this season will unfold. The Penguins could certainly still use improvement in some areas, and there are going to be some tough roster decisions to make as veterans Bryan Rust and Kevin Hayes work their way back from injury. With a current roster at full capacity, some players will need to go. 

But one thing is for certain: The kids are alright. And they’re giving some much-needed life to a team - and a fanbase - that craves a strong dosage of hope for the future.

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The ultimate fate of an NHL team during any given contest can sometimes come down to a series of bounces and what some fans would simply refer to as good or bad luck. 

Such was the case for Detroit Red Wings forward Alex DeBrincat on Thursday evening during his team's Home Opener loss to the Montreal Canadiens at Little Caesars Arena. 

He had multiple prime scoring chances that were denied by goaltender Jakub Dobes, or as was the case early in the second period, by the post. 

DeBrincat's ringer off the left post came just minutes before the Canadiens grabbed a 4-1 stranglehold over the Red Wings; had the puck been literally an inch to the right, it would have been a 3-2 hockey game. 

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"It seemed like I missed both of those, and then they went down and scored shortly after, so it could have been a whole different game if those went in," DeBrincat said on Friday. "Sometimes those are the bounces, that first one hit his shoulder and then the post. I hit my spot, and sometimes they go in, sometimes, they don't." 

Like McLellan, DeBrincat reiterated that the setback against the Canadiens wasn't the result of any single player but by the team getting away from the fundamentals. 

"Letting in five, we shot ourselves in the foot," DeBrincat said of the loss. "We gave up too many chances, and they're a skilled team so they're going to convert on those. Everything they got, we kind of gave to them. It was unfortunate." 

"We Earned Those": Todd McLellan Says Red Wings Deserved Fan Boos After 5-1 Loss Throughout his first Training Camp as head coach of the Detroit Red Wings, Todd McLellan emphasized the importance of mental fortitude and responding the right way when things inevitably go wrong over the course of an 82-game season.

"I think we talk about these things of how we're going to play and the systems, and we have our blueprint; we just didn't follow it," he continued. "We knew what they were going to do, we knew from the start of the game. We just didn't execute on defense and gave them too many chances." 

DeBrincat was Detroit's leading goal scorer last season with 39 tallies, and it wouldn't be surprising to see him reach a similar number this season. Speaking of offensive firepower, the Toronto Maple Leafs still boast no shortage of said despite the offseason trade of Mitch Marner. 

In order for the Red Wings to avoid a similar collapse like what they experienced against the Canadiens, the key will be tightening up defensively. 

"Staying above them, playing on the defensive side of the puck," DeBrincat said on how to defend against the Maple Leafs. "Just in general, forechecking hard. We did a little bit of that yesterday, but not enough. If we want to win games, we're going to need to get more opportunities, and give up less." 

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The Belleville Senators announced on Friday that defenseman Scott Harrington has signed a two-year American Hockey League contract with the club.

Harrington, 32, brings a wealth of NHL experience to Belleville. Originally drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round of the 2011 NHL Draft, the Kingston, Ontario native has suited up for 255 NHL games, most of them with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He's also suited up for Pittsburgh, Toronto, San Jose, and Anaheim, along with 247 career AHL appearances.

“We’re excited to welcome Scott to the Belleville Senators family,” Belleville Sens GM Matt Turek said in a team press release. “Scott’s impressive NHL career, character and leadership ability will all be keys in helping our group to take the next step. As a native of Kingston, growing up just down the 401 from CAA Arena, he'll be a fantastic representative of the Senators and 613 Country.”

Outside of the NHL, Harrington has shown a knack for winning. He captured an OJHL championship with the Kingston Voyageurs, followed by back-to-back OHL titles with the London Knights, where he served as captain in 2012–13.

On the international stage, Harrington represented Team Canada at multiple levels, earning gold at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, silver at the World Under-17 Championship, and bronze at the World Junior Hockey Championship. He's represented Canada twice at the World Juniors. 

Harrington's last NHL season was 2022-23, when he got some looks as Erik Karlsson's D partner in San Jose before being included in the blockbuster Timo Meier trade that season with the New Jersey Devils. The Devils waived Harrington the day after the trade, and Anaheim claimed him. 

Seven years earlier, Harrington was part of an even bigger trade when Phil Kessel was traded from Toronto to Pittsburgh. Harrington came back the other way, and unlike the Meier deal, Harrington was a much bigger piece in this one. In fact, he made the Leafs' opening night roster for the 2015–16 season. 

Two seasons ago, Harrington tried his hand in Switzerland. He was injured for much of that season but returned with Zurich for the 2024 playoffs, and he won yet another championship, skating alongside former Senators Rudolfs Balcers and Derek Grant.

After Harrington returned to North America last season and signed a one-year deal with AHL Springfield last season and now returns for another AHL tour of duty with the B-Sens.

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