DENVER -- As college seasons start to come to an end, teams are dipping to the undrafted college free agent market to bolster their prospect pools.
The Penguins organization made their first prospect signing of the season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton signing Michigan State winger Jagger Joshua to a two-year AHL contract that begins next season.
As a player on an AHL contract, Joshua isn't property of the Pittsburgh team, doesn't count toward the 50-contract limit, and cannot be called up. But players on AHL contracts often earn invites to development camp and training camp, and could potentially earn an NHL entry-level deal if they impress while on their AHL deal.
Joshua, 23, is a 6-foot-3, 210-pound left-handed power forward who has experience playing both left wing and right wing. He compares his playing style to that of Tom Wilson or Wayne Simmonds, as tougher power forwards who have the ability to play with skilled players. As a sophomore he told Michigan State's athletics website, "I love hitting people. There's definitely something about contact that I definitely enjoy. I take pride in it. I don't think about it, I just go out and do it.''
Joshua played in 37 games in his senior season with Michigan State, scoring 13 goals and 11 assists -- tripling his previous season-high point total of eight. His seven goals on the power play were the second-most among players in the Big Ten. He killed penalties in addition to playing on the man advantage.
“Jags really brings a lot to that (top) line," Michigan State coach Adam Nightingale told The State News earlier this season. "His ability to extend plays in the offensive zone and his strength on the puck and obviously he's great around that net. He understands his role. I think it's really important. Player development is like understanding who you are and what makes you great.”
Joshua will report to Wilkes-Barre on an AHL amateur tryout contract for the remainder of this season.
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.Here's how the Penguins' other NHL-contracted players in the minors or draft picks elsewhere did this week:
FORWARDS
Corey Andonovski
Position: Right wing
Size: 6-1/194
Shoots: Right
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 23
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 53 games, 8 goals, 9 assists, 62 PIM
Andonovski was scoreless in three games.
Raivis Ansons
Position: Center/wing
Size: 6-1/190
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2020, fifth round
Age: 20
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 44 games, 2 goal, 4 assists, 27 PIM
Ansons had one assist in his only game this week. He missed Wilkes-Barre's other two games this week with an upper-body injury. He's still being evaluated.
Tristan Broz
Position: Center/wing
Size: 6-0/178
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, second round
Age: 20
Team: Denver (NCAA)
Season totals: 39 games, 10 goals, 18 assists, 33 PIM
Broz was scoreless in one game.
Drake Caggiula
Position: Center/wing
Size: 5-10/176
Shoots: Left
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 28
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 55 games, 17 goals, 28 assists, 43 PIM
Caggiula had three goals and two assists in three games.
Judd Caulfield
Position: Right wing
Size: 6-4/212
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2019, fifth round
Age: 21
Team: North Dakota (NCAA)
Season totals: 39 games, 10 goals, 9 assists, 12 PIM
Caulfield had one goal in his one game this week. North Dakota's season ended with a loss to St. Cloud State.
Luke Devlin
Position: Center
Size: 6-2/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, sixth round
Age: 18
Team: West Kelowna Warriors (BCHL)
Season totals: 49 games, 10 goals, 24 assists, 27 PIM
Devlin had two assists in two games.
Jordan Frasca
Position: Center/left wing
Size: 6-2/183
Shoots: Left
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 21
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Wheeling Nailers (ECHL)
Season totals: 3 games, 14 PIM (AHL), 34 games, 6 goals 5 assists, 8 PIM (ECHL)
Frasca had three goals and an assist in three games with Wheeling.
Ty Glover
Position: Center/ left wing
Size: 6-3/201
Shoots: Left
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 22
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 38 games, 4 goals, 3 assists, 11 PIM
Glover had one assist in three games, as well as a shootout-winning goal.
Jonathan Gruden
Position: Center/left wing
Size: 6-0/172
Shoots: Left
Drafted: Acquired via trade
Age: 22
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL)
Season totals: 43 games, 14 goals, 8 assists, 38 PIM (AHL), 3 games (NHL)
Gruden had two goals and two assists in three games.
Filip Hallander
Position: Center/left wing
Size: 6-3/201
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2018, second round
Age: 22
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL)
Season totals: 39 games, 11 goals, 22 assists, 18 PIM (AHL), 2 games (NHL)
Hallander returned from his injury after being hit in the face with a puck and played two games, scoring two goals and an assist.
His second goal was an empty-netter off a race for the puck:
Nathan Legare
Position: Right wing
Size: 6-0/205
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2019, third round
Age: 22
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 56 games, 6 goals, 9 assists, 52 PIM
Legare played in two games and was scoreless. He was a healthy scratch for Wilkes-Barre's other game this week.
Zam Plante
Position: Center
Size: 5-9/161
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, fifth round
Age: 18
Team: Chicago Steel, Fargo Force (USHL)
Season totals: 33 games, 8 goals, 15 assists, 2 PIM (USHL Chicago), 7 games, 2 goals, 2 assists (USHL Fargo)
Plante was scoreless in three games.
Sam Poulin
Position: Center/wing
Size: 6-2/214
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2019, first round
Age: 21
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL)
Season totals: 13 games, 4 goals, 6 PIM (AHL), 3 games, 1 assist, 2 PIM (NHL)
Poulin returned to Wilkes-Barre this week after a three-month absence for mental health reasons. He has resumed practicing but hasn't played a game yet.
Valtteri Puustinen
Position: Wing
Size: 5-9/183
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2019, seventh round
Age: 23
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 61 games, 21 goals, 28 assists, 22 PIM
Puustinen had two assists in three games.
Puustinen's last goal was on Feb. 24. He has five assists in his last 10 games.
Lukas Svejkovsky
Position: Wing
Size: 5-9/170
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2020, fourth round
Age: 21
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 45 games, 3 goals, 11 assists, 6 PIM
Svejkovsky had two assists in three games.
Kirill Tankov
Position: Center
Size: 6-1/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 20
Team: SKA-Neva (VHL)
Season totals: 1 game
Tankov suffered a season-ending neck injury in the opening game of the season and required surgery to repair a fractured vertebrae. He is expected to be able to play next season and has resumed skating.
Chase Yoder
Position: Center
Size: 5-10/176
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2020, sixth round
Age: 20
Team: Providence (NCAA)
Season totals: 37 games, 8 goals, 7 assists, 14 PIM
Yoder was scoreless in his only game. Providence's season ended with a loss to Boston University.
DEFENSEMEN
Santeri Airola
Size: 5-11, 163
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2019, seventh round
Age: 22
Team: Ilves/SaiPa (Liiga), KOOVEE (Mestis)
Season totals: 5 games, 2 PIM (Ilves Liiga), 10 games, 7 assists (SaiPa Liiga) 29 games, 8 goals, 14 assists, 22 PIM (Mestis)
The Liiga regular season came to an end. Airola's team SaiPa didn't make the playoffs.
Isaac Belliveau
Size: 6-2/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, fifth round
Age: 19
Team: Gatineau Olympiques (QMJHL)
Season totals: 52 games, 11 goals, 35 assists, 48 PIM
Belliveau had one goal and three assists in three games.
Nolan Collins
Size: 6-3/194
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2022, sixth round
Age: 18
Team: Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
Season totals: 60 games, 6 goals, 20 assists, 50 PIM
Collins had one assist in three games
Peter DiLiberatore
Size: 6-0/185
Shoots: Right
Drafted: Acquired via trade
Age: 22
Team: Savannah Ghost Pirates (ECHL), Hendeson Silver Knights, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 18 games, 3 assists (ECHL), 22 games, 3 assists (AHL Henderson), 6 games, 2 goals (AHL WIlkes-Barre)
DiLiberatore scored one goal in three games.
Daniel Laatsch
Size: 6-5/183
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 21
Team: Wisconsin (NCAA)
Season totals: 36 games, 1 goal, 6 assists, 6 PIM
Wisconsin's season is over.
Josh Maniscalco
Size: 6-2/205
Shoots: Right
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 23
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Wheeling Nailers (ECHL)
Season totals: 19 games, 1 assist, 7 PIM (AHL), 31 games, 8 goals, 20 assists, 42 PIM (ECHL)
Maniscalco was scoreless in two games for Wilkes-Barre and was otherwise a healthy scratch for one game.
Ryan McCleary
Size: 6-2/180
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 19
Team: Portland Winterhawks (WHL)
Season totals: 64 games, 12 goals, 18 assists, 43 PIM
McCleary had one assist in four games.
Xavier Ouellet
Size: 6-0/196
Shoots: Left
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 29
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 29 games, 2 goals, 15 assists, 21 PIM
Ouellet suffered an ankle injury on Dec. 31. He underwent successful surgery last week and is done for the rest of the year. He's still signed to a two-way NHL contract through next season.
Owen Pickering
Size: 6-4/180
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, first round
Age: 19
Team: Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
Season totals: 59 games, 9 goals, 35 assists, 28 PIM
Pickering had three assists in four games.
Pickering was a co-winner of the Tom Ham Memorial Trophy as the Broncos' top defenseman.
Ty Smith
Size: 5-11/179
Shoots: Left
Drafted: Acquired via trade
Age: 22
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL)
Season totals: 30 games, 4 goals, 11 assists, 10 PIM (AHL), 9 games, 1 goal, 3 assists, 4 PIM (NHL)
Smith remains week-to-week with a facial fracture after being hit in the jaw by a puck on Feb. 18. He has resumed skating.
Jack St. Ivany
Size: 6-3/201
Shoots: Right
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 23
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 52 games, 8 assists, 24 PIM
St. Ivany had two assists in two games.
Colin Swoyer
Size: 6-0/185
Shoots: Right
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 24
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Wheeling Nailers (ECHL)
Season totals: 29 games, 1 goal, 8 assists, 5 PIM (AHL), 6 games, 1 assist, 4 PIM (ECHL)
Swoyer has one assist in three games with Wilkes-Barre.
GOALTENDERS
Joel Blomqvist
Size: 6-2/183
Catches: Left
Drafted: 2020, second round
Age: 21
Team: Karpat (Liiga)
Season totals: 21 games, 2.29 GAA, .907 SV% (regular season), 3 game, 3.69 GAA, .848 SV% (playoffs)
Blomqvist and Karpat were eliminated in the best-on-five first round of the Liiga playoffs.
Blomqvist stopped 24 of 26 shots in a win in Game 1 last week, his first game back from his three-month absence with a concussion. He started the following night and made 22 saves on 25 shots in a loss. He started Game 3 and allowed four goals on eight shots in 28:08 before being pulled. Karpat lost the game 5-0 and was eliminated.
Taylor Gauthier
Size: 6-2/207
Catches: Right
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 21
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Wheeling Nailers (ECHL)
Season totals: 16 games, 2.65 GAA, .910 SV% (AHL), 16 games, 3.09 GAA, .896 SV%, 1 shutout (ECHL)
Gauthier started one games for Wilkes-Barre and made 25 saves on 29 shots in an overtime loss.
Filip Lindberg
Size: 6-1/194
Catches: Left
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 23
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Season totals: 19 games, 3.13 GAA, .896 SV%
Lindberg has been sidelined with an upper-body injury since Feb. 11. He's considered day-to-day.
Sergei Murashov
Size: 6-0/167
Catches: Right
Drafted: 2022, fourth round
Age: 18
Team: Loko Yaroslavl (MHL), Lokomotiv (KHL)
Season totals: 42 games, 1.53 GAA, .948 SV%, 11 shutouts (MHL regular season), 1 game, 1.00 GAA, .947 SV% (KHL), 6 games, 1.94 GAA, .938 SV% (MHL playoffs)
Murashov's regular season is over. He won two games in back-to-back nights this week to advance to the second round of the MHL playoffs, then won the first two games in back-to-back nights to open the second round.
Dustin Tokarski
Size: 6-0/198
Catches: Left
Drafted: Free agent signing
Age: 33
Team: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL)
Season totals: 29 games, 2.47 GAA, .917 SV%, 1 shutout (AHL), 4 games, 3.44 GAA, ,897 SV% (NHL)
Tokarski played in two games. He made 31 saves on 35 shot and was perfect in a shootout in a win, then stopped 36 of 38 shots in a regulation win.
