That was Brunicke’s mindset when he returned to his junior team, the Kamloops Blazers, around this time last season. Once his WHL campaign ended, Brunicke joined Wilkes-Barre for his first taste of professional hockey.
“I think it was a great learning curve for him to come and have a little bit of the struggles early on there, the first few weekends,” Penguins assistant GM Jason Spezza said in the summer. “Then to see his game blossom, he was probably a guy that got hurt the most by us losing in the first round. His game was really coming on. He’s a guy that I think is really looking to push and take a step and make some noise in camp. But he'll be the one that dictates how ready he is."
After a strong showing at the Prospects Challenge in Buffalo, Brunicke carried that momentum into training camp. The coaching staff, management, and the players saw during the preseason all the tools and potential he possesses to be a difference-maker in the NHL.
“He's got tons of confidence with the puck,” Kris Letang said. “He has a pretty good set of skills, whether it's skating, puck handling. Obviously, his confidence makes him really dangerous. He can hold onto pucks and use his patience. So, it’s going to be exciting to see what he can do at this level.”
President of Hockey Operations and GM Kyle Dubas stated that he was looking to see the younger players push and make roster decisions difficult. While Brunicke was able to accomplish that task, so was forward Ben Kindel, who was selected in the first round this past June. Fittingly, it was Kindel who first joined Brunicke in his celebration after the goal.
“They weren't put in a massive situation to just walk in and walk onto the team. They got lots of chances to play, between the Prospects Challenge in Buffalo, which is hugely important, and then in exhibition,” Dubas told Josh Getzoff in the first episode of the GM Show.
“Some young guys fall off as it goes, and others just continue to play extraordinarily well every opportunity they get. I think in both of their cases, they had a lot of great moments. But the thing that was, I think, most important for us was that when they had tough moments or mistakes, they didn't let it derail them. They redeemed themselves. They got better.”
Brunicke is just the second South-African-born player to suit up in the NHL. After speaking with his family prior to his debut, Harrison’s mom, Kim, was overwhelmed with emotions to see how far her son had come.
“So much has to come together at the right moment for this to happen,” said Kim. “It’s so many pieces, right? It’s just incredible. At the same time, it's incredible, but it’s not surprising, because knowing him, of course, this is possible for him.”
To top it all off, his family was there in person to witness his first goal, as the Penguins arranged for the Brunickes and Kindels to come to Pittsburgh from New York.
While it is only two games into his young career, moments like these only come once. At the same time, Brunicke is keeping his foot on the gas pedal and continuing to be a difference maker every night that he is in the lineup.
“Just keep building off of it,” said Brunicke. “There’s a lot of areas [that have room] for improvement. Like I’ve said, bigger, stronger, faster guys. [I want to] keep playing against those guys and showcasing my skill and effort, and keep competing.”
