Penguins Recall Agozzino, Give Angello First Recall

The Pittsburgh Penguins recalled forward depth on Thursday as their bye week ended, and it appears they didn’t make it past the A’s in their recall selection. The Penguins recalled forward Andrew Agozzino who was inserted into fourth-line duty for several games prior to the break, and the Penguins recalled Anthony Angelo for the first time in his career. Both recalls were on an emergency basis, according to Penguins GM Jim Rutherford.

The emergency recall status means the players must be returned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton when the Penguins have 12 healthy forwards. They will not need to pass through waivers.

Agozzino has one assist in nine NHL games this season. He’s played 30 NHL games, split between Colorado and Pittsburgh. He has six career NHL points, including one goal.

This is the first taste of the NHL for Angello, who was the Penguins fifth-round choice in 2014. He played three seasons for Cornell, after a pair in the USHL. At Cornell, Angello set career highs in his junior year with 13 goals and 13 assists in 33 games.

Angello, 23, left Cornell for the Penguins organization after the 2017-18 season and played in a pair of playoff games that season for the WBS Penguins. The power forward had two goals in two games.

This season, the 6-foot-5, 210-pound Angello has 25 points, including 16 goals in 45 games. He ranks first on the team in goals and is tied for second with nine assists. Angello and Agozzino each lead the WBS Penguins with three game-winning goals.

Here is the full press release from the Pittsburgh Penguins

The Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled forwards Anthony Angello and Andrew Agozzino from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League on an emergency basis, it was announced today by executive vice president and general manager Jim Rutherford.

Angello, 23, has produced 16 goals, nine assists, and 25 points in 45 games this year for WBS. He ranks first on the team in goals, tied for second in assists, and is tied for first with Agozzino with three game-winning goals. The Albany, New York native is looking to make his NHL debut.

At the AHL level, all with WBS, the six-foot-five, 210-pound Angello has collected 32 goals, 22 assists, and 54 points in 112 games.

Angello was the Penguins’ fifth-round (145th overall) draft selection in the 2014 NHL Draft and signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the team on April 5, 2018.

Prior to signing his deal, Angello played three seasons at Cornell University where in 102 games, he recorded 70 points (36G-34A) and a plus-31. In each of his three seasons at Cornell, Angello produced 10-plus goals and 20-plus points. 

Before joining Cornell, Angello skated for two seasons with the Omaha Lancers of the United States Hockey League. He was named the USHL Scholar-Athlete Award winner for the 2013-14 campaign.

Agozzino, 29, has appeared in nine games at the NHL level this season, notching his first point (1A) with the Penguins on January 14 in the win against Minnesota.

The Kleinburg, Ontario native leads WBS in points (33) and is tied for second on the team in goals (14) and assists (19) after 37 games played. He was also named to the 2020 AHL All-Star Classic.

With both Pittsburgh and the Colorado Avalanche, Agozzino has totaled six points (1G-5A) in 30 NHL games.

Pittsburgh returns from the All-Star Break on Friday, January 31 at home against Philadelphia. Puck drop is set for 7:00 PM. The Penguins will hold “Black Hockey History Day” as the NHL’s Black Hockey History mobile museum comes to Pittsburgh for the first time.