Inside Scoop: 2026 Prospect Tournament

PRACTICE IN PITTSBURGH BEFORE HITTING THE ROAD

The prospects skated at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex on Friday morning before boarding the bus and making the 4.5-hour(ish) trip to Detroit. Although there was some chaos in familiarizing the new additions with how the Penguins want to play, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Head Coach Kirk MacDonald was very happy with how the session went.

“Honestly, overall, today was the best day in my time here for the first day in the prospects camp,” said MacDonald, who will be taking the lead this weekend along with the rest of the WBS staff. “It was a great practice, the guys were dialed in, and it’s a credit to them. They were really good.”

As for what the expectations are over these next few days, it all centers around compete and building comfortability.

“We understand that at the end of the day, the games don’t mean anything for standings or aren’t even preseason games. We’re trying to win, but at the same time, we’re trying to help the guys get better,” MacDonald said.

“We’re trying to put them in a position so that when training camp starts next week with the big boys, they’re a little bit more comfortable. Hopefully this gives them a head start in the sense that they’ve been in game action, they’re ready to go, and they’re a little bit more comfortable with the system and how they want to play.”

INTRO

After a few years in Buffalo, New York (and before that, London, Ontario), the Penguins prospects are playing in a different city this September.

The inaugural Prospect Tournament is being held at Little Caesars Arena’s BELFOR Training Center. The other participating teams are the Blue Jackets, Stars, and of course, the host Red Wings.

We’ll miss Buffalo, as the setup and the people there are great. We’ve also had a blast trying different wing spots – ones that come to mind are Adolf’s Old First Ward Tavern, Carbone’s, Gabriel’s Gate and Duff’s. However, ordering ranch dressing instead of bleu cheese is a big faux pas there, so I’m looking forward to getting that with my Little Caesars pizza as part of the best media meal in the entire league. Not to mention I’m born and raised in Michigan, so I’m personally thrilled to be home.

The roster is here. The schedule is as follows:

Saturday, September 12

Pittsburgh vs. Columbus, 3 PM

Sunday, September 13

Pittsburgh vs. Detroit, 3 PM

Monday, September 14

Day Off

Tuesday, September 15

Pittsburgh vs. Dallas, 10:30 AM

All three games will be streamed on the Penguins website.

I'll add tournament content here, so stay tuned!