The Penguins have recalled forwards Joseph Blandisi and Thomas Di Pauli and defenseman Kevin Czuczman from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Jim Rutherford announced on Friday morning.
The three were previously assigned to Wilkes-Barre on Sunday, at the start of the Penguins' holiday break. As I explained at the time, that reassignment wasn't necessarily an indication of anyone coming back from injury, and it was likely just a move to prevent them from needlessly accumulating days on an NHL active roster that could impact their waiver status down the line. A player can spend up to 30 days (or 10 games played, whichever comes first) on an NHL roster after clearing waivers once during the season before they would need to clear waivers a second time.
By having the three players in Wilkes-Barre over the holiday break, they were saved from having a few days added to their counters.
Czuczman again got the call over Zach Trotman because Trotman is still dealing with a head injury. He last played on Dec. 13.
Di Pauli is still working toward his first NHL game after signing with the Penguins in 2016. Czuczman has 13 games of NHL experience, all with the Islanders at the end of the 2013-14 season after his college career ended.
