CRANBERRY, Pa. -- 23-year-old forward prospect Sam Lafferty will make his preseason debut tonight for the Penguins.
"I'm really excited," said Lafferty, the Penguins’ 2014 fourth-round pick, after the Penguins' morning skate. "It's a great opportunity, and I'm just looking forward to it."
Lafferty, a native of nearby Hollidaysburg, Pa., was a hardcore Penguins fan since he was 4 years old and grew up idolizing Sidney Crosby, he told me last season. The opportunity to wear the jersey of his childhood team in an actual game, albeit a preseason one, is one he doesn't take lightly.
"(It's) probably the biggest (milestone) so far to finally -- even though it's not a regular-season game -- put on a Penguins sweater in an NHL arena and go play," Lafferty said. "I'm very fortunate to have the opportunity, just really excited."
Lafferty said he was "definitely" starstruck by being on the same ice as Crosby at first, calling it a "surreal" experience. He said he has gotten more comfortable as camp has gone along and is able to learn from Crosby's work ethic.
"Every time on the ice, I'm just watching his every move," Lafferty said of Crosby. "I haven't had a chance to interact with him too much, but just seeing him, the way he carries himself and the way he performs every day is great for everyone in the organization to look at that."
When I spoke with Lafferty last season, the Brown University grad said he also looks up to other former college players such as Jake Guentzel and Zach Aston-Reese, who started out in Wilkes-Barre and worked their way up to Pittsburgh.
“Those guys have sort of laid the blueprint for moving through Wilkes-Barre and going up to Pittsburgh,” he said last season. “I think it just shows that you gotta soak it in while you’re here and keep working on your game, and then take advantage whenever your number is called and you get the opportunity.”
Lafferty made his professional debut last season after the conclusion of his senior year at Brown. In nine regular season games to close out the season, he recorded one goal and two assists and showed off one of his major strengths -- his speed.
"It was really important to go down to Wilkes-Barre last year, it really helped my development," he said. "I'm definitely comfortable (with the speed of the pro game), I'm just looking to use my speed tonight."
Lafferty said he can draw on that small stint of pro experience from last season, and it has him ready to go for tonight.
Lafferty has spent much of camp centering a line of Freddie Tiffels and Troy Josephs. Tonight, he'll center the Penguins' third line with Sam Miletic and Ryan Haggerty All are potential future linemates for his first full professional season.
Lafferty has played with Haggerty before -- Haggerty and Adam Johnson set up Lafferty's first professional goal, a wrist shot April 3 in a 5-3 win over the Hershey Bears.
With Lafferty's debut, can we expect the NHL Network to have a spike in ratings in Hollidaysburg tonight?
"Yeah, I think so," he laughed.
