BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Penguins center prospect Jordan Frasca has had to wait a little longer than he probably hoped for his pro debut. But after the move the Penguins made on Friday, it seems like Frasca's first professional game is imminent.
Frasca, 21, was an undrafted free agent signing by the Penguins last spring out of the OHL's Kingston Frontenacs. The 2021-22 season was Frasca's overage season in the OHL and he finished No. 3 on Kingston in scoring with 42 goals and 45 assists in 61 games.
Frasca participated in the Penguins' training camp and made his preseason debut on the Sept. 25 game in Columbus, centering the Penguins' fourth line. He scored the Penguins' only goal that game midway through the third period in what turned out to be a 5-1 loss.
It's not clear how Frasca may have been injured, but he suffered an apparent foot injury in that game. During the Penguins' preseason game two days later I reported that Frasca was wearing a boot on his right foot and wearing crutches, and he wore that boot for the remainder of training camp.
Frasca has spent the season thus far rehabbing his injury in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and began taking contact just over a week ago.
On Friday morning the Penguins re-assigned Frasca from Wilkes-Barre to Wheeling, an indication that he's healthy and ready to get into the lineup. With there not being an open spot for him in Wilkes-Barre's roster, assigning him to Wheeling allows him to get the playing time with big minutes that he needs after being sidelined for the last two and half months.
The Nailers are on a two-game road trip, playing the Cincinnati Cyclones on Friday and the Kalamazoo Wings on Saturday. Frasca will join the Nailers on the road trip.
Frasca, who is listed at 6-foot-2 and 183 pounds, told me during the Penguins' development camp that his speed is an area of his game in which he'd like to make significant strides this season.
"I know most people probably say the first three steps," he told me. "I think that's a big one for me. What we've talked about here at camp is single-leg strength, and I think that's what I need to work on. Skating, for sure. From the OHL to AHL, or OHL to NHL, or OHL to any pro league, the difference is always the speed. That's the biggest thing I've been trying to work on."
