Penguins' Vasily Ponomarev: NHL rights remain with club
Rotowire
Ponomarev was given a qualifying offer from Pittsburgh on Monday.
An initial report indicated that Ponomarev was not going to be retained by the Penguins but it seems like that plan changed. The 23-year-old center is signed with KHL club Avangard Omsk for the next three seasons, so even if he does return to the NHL, it won't be any time soon.
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Vasily Ponomarev: Won't receive qualifying offer
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Ponomarev will not be given a qualifying offer from the Penguins, Penguins play-by-play announcer Josh Getzoff reports Monday.
Ponomarev already agreed to terms on a three-year contract with Avangard Omsk (KHL), so he wasn't going to be playing for the franchise any time soon. It seems the Pens won't bother trying to retain his NHL rights that long, so if Ponomarev decides to return in the future, he will be able to sign with any NHL club.
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Penguins' Vasily Ponomarev: Inks three-year deal with KHL club
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Ponomarev signed a three-year contract with the KHL's Avangard Omsk on Wednesday, per Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports.
Ponomarev had 15 goals, 41 points and 44 PIM across 55 regular-season appearances with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton as well as no points, two PIM and five hits in seven outings with Pittsburgh in 2024-25. He was set to become a restricted free agent this summer, so the Penguins can retain the 23-year-old's NHL rights by presenting him with a qualifying offer.
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Penguins' Vasily Ponomarev: Back in bigs
Rotowire
Ponomarev was called up from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on an emergency basis Thursday.
Ponomarev has 15 goals and 25 assists in 40 AHL contests, including two goals and three assists in his last five games. He has seen limited action at the NHL level, playing four games this season with no points, while averaging 9:13 of ice time.
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Penguins' Vasily Ponomarev: Up from minors
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Ponomarev was summoned from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Saturday.
Ponomarev has 11 goals and 27 points in 31 AHL outings this season. He's also appeared in three games with Pittsburgh, recording no points, four shots, one hit and one block. Ponomarev might draw into the lineup Saturday due to the absence of Bryan Rust (lower body), who moved to injured reserve in a corresponding move.
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Penguins' Vasily Ponomarev: Recalled by Pittsburgh
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Ponomarev was recalled from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Thursday.
Ponomarev was sent to the minors at the end of October after being taken off the injured non-roster list, but he'll rejoin the Penguins to provide additional depth as the team deals with multiple injuries. He made two NHL appearances for Carolina last year and tallied a goal and an assist while averaging 9:41 of ice time.
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Penguins' Vasily Ponomarev: Headed for minors
Rotowire
Ponomarev (upper body) was taken off the injured non-roster list and reassigned to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Thursday.
Ponomarev was a long shot to make Pittsburgh's Opening Night roster, but a preseason injury all but guaranteed he would start the year in the minors. Still, the 22-year-old Russian has shown some offensive upside in the AHL and should be on the shortlist of potential call-ups throughout 2024-25.
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Penguins' Vasily Ponomarev: Starting season on shelf
Rotowire
Ponomarev (upper body) was placed on season-opening injured reserve Monday.
Ponomarev will almsot certainly be reassigned to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton once he is cleared to return to action. The 22-year-old Russian played in two NHL games last year for the Hurricanes, tallying one goal and one assist while averaging 9:41 of ice time. While he could earn a call-up from time to time, Ponomarev should see the bulk of his time in the minors this year.
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Penguins' Vasily Ponomarev: Dealing with upper-body injury
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Ponomarev is being evaluated for an upper-body injury suffered in Tuesday's preseason game versus the Red Wings.
Ponomarev has had a strong preseason, but this injury could hinder his chances of making the Opening Night roster. The 22-year-old exited the game in the second period after a hard collision with the boards. He is day-to-day ahead of Thursday's preseason game in Columbus.
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Penguins' Vasily Ponomarev: Dealt to Pittsburgh
Rotowire
Ponomarev, Michael Bunting, Ville Koivunen, Cruz Lucius, a conditional 2024 first-round pick and a conditional 2024 fifth-round pick were traded to the Penguins from the Hurricanes on Thursday in exchange for Jake Guentzel and Ty Smith, Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports.
Ponomarev is likely the most NHL ready of the three prospects heading to the Penguins. He has two points in two games with the Hurricanes this season, and he's added 29 points over 41 contests between AHL Tucson and AHL Chicago. Ponomarev is more of a defense-first center with some sneaky playmaking -- he's unlikely to see anything more than third-line duties as long as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Lars Eller are all on the Penguins' roster.
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Hurricanes' Vasily Ponomarev: Sent down to minors
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Ponomarev was loaned to AHL Chicago on Sunday.
Ponomarev notched one goal and one assist during his NHL debut Friday in a 6-2 win over Washington. He was held off the scoresheet in Saturday's 2-1 shootout loss to St. Louis. Ponomarev has racked up six goals and 20 points in 22 AHL contests this campaign.
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Hurricanes' Vasily Ponomarev: Recalled Friday
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Ponomarev was summoned from AHL Chicago on Friday.
Ponomarev has six goals and 20 points in 22 AHL contests between Tucson and Chicago this season. The 21-year-old might make his NHL debut Friday versus Washington if Stefan Noesen (illness) or Martin Necas (undisclosed) is unable to play.
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Hurricanes' Vasily Ponomarev: Headed to AHL
Rotowire
Ponomarev (knee) was reassigned to AHL Tucson on Thursday, according to Cory Lavalette of the North State Journal.
Ponomarev was injured early in training camp and has been on injured reserve ever since, but his assignment to the minors suggests he's now healthy. Ponomarev has yet to see any NHL action but the 21-year-old had 24 goals and 46 points in 64 games with AHL Chicago last season. He is expected to get plenty of playing time with Tucson and could be recalled if the Hurricanes run into injury problems.
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Hurricanes' Vasily Ponomarev: Closing in on return
Rotowire
Ponomarev (knee) is close to playing, coach Rod Brind'Amour told Walt Ruff of the Hurricanes' official site on Wednesday.
Ponomarev sustained his knee injury in September and began the campaign on the non-roster/injured reserve list as a result. He had 24 goals and 46 points in 64 AHL contests with Chicago last year.
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Hurricanes' Vasily Ponomarev: Joins big club
Rotowire
Ponomarev was recalled from AHL Chicago on Monday, per CapFriendly.
Ponomarev has yet to make his NHL debut, but he tallied 24 goals and 46 points in 64 AHL contests this season. He's likely serving as extra depth on the NHL roster.
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Hurricanes' Vasily Ponomarev: Links up with AHL team
Rotowire
Ponomarev was assigned to AHL Chicago on Saturday, per CapFriendly.
Ponomarev played in his native Russia throughout the season. A part of the KHL's Spartak Moscow, the forward logged two points in 14 KHL games and 13 points in 21 games with second-division Khimik Voskresensk. The 20-year-old will head to North America, though he figures to need at least some time with the Wolves before getting a look at the NHL level.
