Technically, defenseman Jeff Taylor has already earned his first NHL call-up.
Pittsburgh recalled Taylor in a paper transaction for a day back in October after Justin Schultz's injury. Taylor's contract, when added to the active roster, allowed the Penguins to receive the most cap relief when they placed Schultz on long-term injured reserve.
Taylor didn't have to report to Pittsburgh, but that doesn't mean he didn't get anything out of the experience.
"(Clark Donatelli) called me in and was just like, 'Congrats! You got called-up ... on paper,'" Taylor told me this week. "I didn't have to go to the rink (in Wilkes-Barre). I couldn't go to the rink that day because technically you're not allowed to practice with the team. I got a nice paid day off, I wasn't complaining."
Taylor still earned an NHL paycheck for his non-services that day -- about $4,000. Not a bad day off work.
Now in his second full professional season, Taylor is working on growing all areas of his game so he can hopefully earn that call for real one day.
When the Penguins took the left-handed Taylor in the seventh round in 2014, it was his puck-moving skills that caught their eye. He had a solid 27-point season in 57 USHL games two years prior, and was coming off of a rookie season at Union College in which he had recorded 16 points in 41 games.
Taylor played alongside Shayne Gostisbehere in college, drawing some comparisons to the Flyers' third-round pick. Union coach Rick Bennett said he saw Taylor as a younger version of Gostisbehere. Gostisbehere said Taylor’s puck-moving skills were so impressive that it “drops (his) jaw sometimes.”
Over the next three years at Union, Taylor grew the offensive side of his game. In his senior season in 2016-17, he was nearly a point-per-game player with nine goals and 24 assists in 38 games. He concluded his collegiate career with the second-most points in school history, with 92 in 149 games. He joined Wilkes-Barre on an amateur deal to close out the season, then made his professional debut in 2017-18.
Taylor split last year between Wilkes-Barre and Wheeling. As with most college players making the jump to pro hockey, Taylor found that the points didn't come nearly as easy. In 14 AHL games as a rookie, he only recorded one assist. He spent most of the year in Wheeling, where he did produce, with four goals and 15 assists in 28 games.
"Coming into pro hockey, you never want to go to the East Coast league, but I had a really good experience in Wheeling," Taylor said of his rookie season. "We had a really, really good team, a really skilled team. I enjoyed my time in Wheeling and I'm definitely glad that I did play those games to gain that confidence in Wheeling and learn in the East Coast league."
This season, Taylor has spent the entire year in the AHL, which he called "definitely rewarding." He's become more of a regular on Wilkes-Barre's blue line, appearing in 27 of the team's 40 games. He's recorded just three assists, and two goals -- the first coming last month against Bridgeport, and the second coming this Saturday in Charlotte:
Not being able to rely so much on his offensive play at the AHL level has made Taylor a more well-rounded player. He's had to focus on his play away from the puck more, which means more blocks like this one:
"I've definitely had to focus on my defensive play more in pro hockey than in college," he said. "The guys are so much more skilled, so much bigger and faster. It's definitely a part of my game that's been an adjustment, but I think I'm getting better at it."
At 6-feet, 185 pounds, Taylor is one of the smaller defensemen on Wilkes-Barre, but he's also one of the fastest. He still contributes as a playmaker, even though his efforts aren't always rewarded on the scoresheet.
Taylor's personal goals this season are to continue to grow his overall two-way game. He wants to continue to work on his defensive play, and hopefully see some of his scoring touch return.
"Be responsible, and make sure they can trust me out there in the D-zone," said Taylor of his goals. "In the O-zone, getting more shots on net and moving pucks up to the forwards to create more opportunities."
Of course, adding another championship ring to his resume is the real goal. Taylor is no stranger to hoisting some hardware. He won the USHL's Clark Cup in 2013, and an NCAA Championship with Union the following year. It would mean a lot to Taylor to help bring a Calder Cup to Wilkes-Barre for the first time in the franchise's history.
"It would be huge for Wilkes-Barre," Taylor said. "I think every year Wilkes has had a good team and a good chance and it's crazy that they haven't put one together. The fans here are awesome, they're faithful for 20 years."
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THE ROSTER MOVES
• Garrett Wilson was recalled to Pittsburgh on Jan. 9. Cam Brown slid into Wilson's spot on the top line alongside Teddy Blueger and Anthony Angello. At 5-feet-7, Brown is more than half a foot shorter than Wilson, but he can fly.
THE INJURIES
• Zach Trotman remains out of the lineup with an injury sustained on Nov. 4. … Sam Miletic has been out with an upper-body injury since Nov. 30. … Chris Summers remains injured from a hit on Dec. 12. … Thomas Di Pauli hasn’t played since Dec. 16 with a lower-body injury. … Ben Sexton was injured after two hits on Jan. 5.
THE NEWS
• Wilkes-Barre signed Nailers forwards Yushiroh Hirano and Cedric Lacroix to full AHL contracts on Sunday, but did not yet recall either player. Both players attended Wilkes-Barre's training camp and were among the early cuts. As the season has progressed, both players grew more comfortable in their first professional seasons. Signing them now prevents them from signing AHL deals in other organizations midseason.
• I didn't mention this last week, but the team has switched uniforms now in the second half of the season. The AHL wears white jerseys at home and dark jerseys on the road in the first half of the season, and they do the reverse for the second half. It gives fans the opportunity to see both sets.
• Forward Jarrett Burton was the guest on the latest episode of Penguins Podcast with broadcaster Nick Hart.
THE GAMES
• Jan. 11: at Charlotte, 5-1 win
The Penguins dominated the league's best team on Friday.
Burton opened the scoring 2:56 into the game, his third goal of the season. Linus Olund scored his fifth just seven minutes later, a shorthanded goal. Angello's 12th chased Charlotte goaltender Scott Darling just 16:27 into the game after allowing three goals on 12 shots.
Blueger increased the Penguins' lead to 4-0 only 39 seconds into the middle frame. The Checkers got on the board midway through the second period, but it would be their only goal of the game. Jean-Sebastien Dea scored the third period's only goal, his fourth of the year, to seal the win. The Penguins handed the Checkers' just their ninth regulation loss of the season.
Ethan Prow had three assists in the win. Adam Johnson, while he didn't score, led the team with five shots. The penalty kill was a perfect 4-for-4, and the power play was successful once on six attempts.
Tristan Jarry earned the win in net with 28 saves on 29 shots.
• Jan. 12: at Charlotte, 5-3 loss
This time, it was the Checkers who took a 3-0 lead in the first period.
Brown began the comeback attempt midway through the second period with his first goal as a Penguin. Prow's 11th goal of the season cut the Checkers' lead to one, but the Checkers answered before the end of the second period. Taylor scored his second of the year midway through the third period, but the comeback fell short. The Checkers scored an empty net goal to put the game away.
"It felt really good to contribute in the comeback," said Taylor. "We had a tough first period, but I thought we had a really good second and third, I thought we'd complete the comeback there. It wasn't a complete game but it was a really good last two periods."
The power play went 1-for-5, and the penalty kill went 5-for-6.
Jarry made 22 saves on 26 shots in the second of his back-to-back starts of the weekend. He now has a .910 save percentage and 2.77 goals against average through 21 appearances.
THE LEADERS
• Goals: Blueger, 17 in 40 games.
• Assists: Sam Lafferty, 19 in 40 games.
• Points: Blueger, 31 in 40 games.
THE COMBINATIONS
Cam Brown – Teddy Blueger – Anthony Angello
Adam Johnson – Sam Lafferty – Jimmy Hayes
Joseph Cramarossa – Jean-Sebastien Dea – Ryan Haggerty
Ryan Scarfo – Linus Olund – Jarrett Burton
Kevin Czuczman – Macoy Erkamps
Matt Abt – Ethan Prow
Jeff Taylor – Tim Erixon
THE STANDINGS
• After this week, the Penguins record is 19-16-4-1. They're tied with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (20-15-1-2) for fourth in the Atlantic Division, but the Phantoms have the tiebreaker. The power play sits at 16.6 percent, 23rd in the 31-team league. The penalty kill rose to 79.9 percent overall, also 23rd in the league.
• The Penguins lead the league in penalty minutes, with 665 in 40 games. They have quite the lead over the second-place Binghamton Devils, who have 621 in 42 games.
• The Penguins have the second-worst home record in the league, at 8-9-1. They have the eighth-best road record, at 11-7-3-1.
THE SCHEDULE
• The Penguins will have two home games this week. They'll host the Rochester Americans (23-13-2) on Friday, and the rival Hershey Bears (17-20-0-2) on Saturday.
• The Penguins will practice Wednesday and Thursday at 10:30 a.m. at the Toyota SportsPlex.
GOALS OF THE WEEK
Angello chased Darling with this one:
Blueger dropped to one knee for this shot:
Dea was wide open for this power play goal:
Brown's goal was his second in the AHL and his first as a Penguin. He had a 13-game stint in Springfield last season:
SAVE OF THE WEEK
Jarry made this series of stops on Friday:
WILKES-BARRE FUN THING
Here's something pretty cool. See those Penguins fans lined up to cheer on the players as they take the ice? This is in Charlotte. I like the diversity of old jerseys here -- Dominik Uher? Paul Bissonnette? Steve Wagner? It's not just the NHL club that travels well.
Nothing like a little VIP treatment for our visiting team’s passionate fans. See you all tonight for round 2. @WBSPenguins pic.twitter.com/8FLwFhZoWd
— Jeremy Recoon (@J_Recoon) January 12, 2019
On Monday morning, Trotman and Summers revealed the team's uniforms for Star Wars night:
Holy Sith!!! The boys will be skating at Lightspeed March 30th!! @starwars @WBSPenguins #Penguins #nhl #ahl #starwars pic.twitter.com/Efd9bDZ4ZD
— Zach Trotman (@Ztrotman4) January 14, 2019
