Mike Sullivan said before the Penguins' western road trip that he anticipated the team taking advantage of its taxi squad as insurance while on the road.
They didn't want to be all the way out in California, have a player get injured or go into COVID protocol, and have all of their backup options be on the other side of the country in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
With the Penguins' western road trip over, and forwards Zach Aston-Reese and Danton Heinen both expected to return from COVID protocol any day now, the Penguins sent some of those insurance players back to Wilkes-Barre.
The Penguins on Tuesday assigned forwards Anthony Angello, Kasper Bjorkqvist, and Filip Hallander back to Wilkes-Barre.
With Juuso Riikola being assigned to Wilkes-Barre on Monday, the only player remaining on the Penguins' taxi squad is now Radim Zohorna.
Angello played just one game during the recall, Jan. 11 in Anaheim, recording no points and one hit in the game.
Bjorkqvist appeared in his first six NHL games during his recall, scoring his first NHL goal in his NHL debut on Jan. 2 at home against San Jose:
Bjorkqvist also recorded nine hits and two blocked shots in his six games, and spent some time on the Penguins' penalty kill.
Hallander practiced with the team during his time on the taxi squad, but has yet to make his NHL debut.
