The Penguins have released their first preseason game lineup ahead of tomorrow night’s matchup in Buffalo.
Star players and other key figures usually don’t appear early in the exhibition schedule, and even lesser so when it’s a road game. NHL rules mandate a certain number of players with regular season games last year, so Pittsburgh will send up Drew O’Connor, Valtteri Puustinen, Cody Glass, Jesse Puljujarvi, Emil Bemstrom, Ryan Graves, John Ludwig and Ryan Shea to join a cast of mostly younger and inexperienced players for the early road exhibition contest.
Rutger McGroarty, Harrison Brunicke, Ville Koivunen and Tristan Broz all get the nod, and following being the core of a successful Prospects Tournament last week have played their way into what could be some meaningful opportunities.