Penguins Recall Mark Friedman (Again)

Two days after demoting defenseman Mark Friedman to the WBS Penguins and one day after recalling Tayor Fedun from WBS, the Pittsburgh Penguins recalled Friedman Friday afternoon.

Right-side Defensemen Kris Letang and Jeff Petry remain out of the lineup. Letang has a lower-body injury and is with family in Montreal after the untimely passing of his father last week. Petry remains on LTIR with an upper-body injury. He has not yet rejoined the team for practice or a morning skate but has been skating before or after Penguins’ practices.

Thursday, right-side defenseman Jan Rutta missed practice with what coach Mike Sullivan termed a “maintenance day.”

Rutta took the optional morning skate Friday.

Mark Friedman, 27, has played in three games with the Pittsburgh Penguins this season and is a plus-3. This season with the WBS Penguins, Friedman has recorded one goal, four assists, and is plus-5 in 19 AHL games. He has been plus or even in 16 of his 19 AHL games this year.

The 5-foot-11, 185-pound defenseman has played parts of three seasons in the Penguins’ organization. Last season, Friedman played a career-high NHL 26 games. He scored one goal, four assists, and five points. The defenseman also appeared in six games with the Penguins during the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs, tallying one goal.