The Penguins have recalled forward Joseph Blandisi on an emergency basis, Jim Rutherford announced on Saturday. He'll be in the Penguins lineup Saturday evening against the Kings at PPG Paints Arena as Evgeni Malkin sits out another game with an illness.
Blandisi was last recalled by Pittsburgh on Thursday, then re-assigned back to the AHL on Friday. His transactions page for this season on CapFriendly tells quite a story:
The Penguins didn't skate this morning, but Malkin skated this morning on his own with Juuso Riikola.
Blandisi's latest recall will also provide insurance at forward for the upcoming western Canada road trip. They weren't carrying any extra forwards before the recall, and if they were to lose a forward on the road once Malkin returns, it wouldn't be easy to bring a guy up from Wilkes-Barre.
Blandisi's recall was an emergency recall, but when Malkin returns and the "emergency" situation ends, the emergency recall could just be converted to a regular recall on paper.
Saturday will be Blandisi's fourth game in four days, with travel in between. He played in Rochester with Wilkes-Barre on Wednesday, in Pittsburgh against the Blue Jackets on Thursday, then in Cleveland with Wilkes-Barre last night.
