A late season victory over the Blackhawks isn’t exactly something to get excited about. Both teams are cooked for 2024-25 and are playing out the string. What is exciting is seeing one of your prospects taking the next step in real time.

Ville Koivunen is here to stay. He’s a legit NHL player. His small sample of NHL action is enough for me to feel confident about his place on the team moving forward. He has done a great job producing offense at the AHL level and more than earned his promotion here at the end of the season.

Last night I came away more than impressed with his work when he was moved to the Crosby line. He has a great understanding of time and space and he more than has the hands necessary to act on those instincts. He showed great awareness and was able to make all the necessary passes to keep plays alive in the offensive zone. It led to a really nice primary assist

Erik Karlsson tucks home Koivunen's cross-crease dish for his 200th NHL goal!

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What I love about this is that he looks right at Sidney Crosby and instead of force feeding him like many young players who have come before him, he immediately recognizes he isn’t as open as the better option across the way to Erik Karlsson. Couple this play with one (couldn’t find it online) he made earlier where he passed it to Crosby in the slot when he didn’t look open, but he passed him open because Crosby’s momentum was taking him towards the pass. Two instances where Crosby didn’t look open, but he was able to understand what play was feasible and which play was a dead end. These two plays showed me a lot about Koivunen’s hockey IQ and why I’m pretty bullish on where he is moving forward.

Add in the fact he keeps his feet moving and makes things annoying for the other team and you have a player who is going to jump right into an impactful role. He’s the type of player the Penguins have been trying to add to the organization. He will be 22 heading into next season, which should begin at the NHL level. This has been a great development for the roster moving forward. So for the final three games, there’s at least something really intriguing to focus on.

Thanks for reading!

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