When Penguins forward prospect Tristan Broz made the decision this summer to transfer from the University of Minnesota to Denver University, he was looking for a new home that would be better for his development in his sophomore season.
"I think it'll just be a really good fit for me at Denver," Broz told me at the Penguins' development camp this summer.. "It'll be a place where I think I can kind of develop a lot on the ice, but I think more so off the ice is as a person, as a human being, and learn to be a professional, learning to take care of every detail off the ice."
It was a slow start offensively for Broz, the Penguins' second-round pick in 2021. He had just one goal and one assist in his first 13 games.
Ever since then, however, Broz has picked up the pace. In his last 11 games he's recorded eight goals and 10 assists, producing at well over a point-per-game pace in that span. Those points have been pretty spread out, too, with Broz recording at least a point in nine of his last 11 games.
Denver's last game was a 7-0 win over Miami Ohio on Saturday, and it was Broz that led the way with four goals. It was the first multi-goal game of his collegiate career.
Broz opened the scoring 26 seconds into the second period with this top-shelf shot from the right circle:
His second goal was this five-hole shot in the third period:
Broz completed the hat trick with this back-door shot later in the third period:
Just 45 seconds later, Broz scored his fourth goal of the night with this one-knee shot from the right circle on a power play:
"Just good plays by teammates. I'm surrounded by so many talented hockey players and amazing people," Broz said of his game afterward. "They make it so easy to play the game, so a lot of credit to them."
Denver head coach David Carle had high praise for the steps Broz has taken in his development after the game.
"He is a really fast player," Carle said. "We saw it on the goal where he drove by. You thought he might have to fight off a check to get to the net, but he just blew past a guy and really showcased his speed. That's the player that we watched in Fargo (in the USHL), the player we are starting to see more regularly. As we talked about last night, the challenge is to see that consistently, shift-to-shift, game-to-game. It's a process. These kids are young. They are not perfect every night, so it's working with them. It is good to see growth in his game."
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Here's how the Penguins' other prospects in junior, college, and Europe did this week:
FORWARDS
Tristan Broz
Position: Center/wing
Size: 6-0/178
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, second round
Age: 20
Team: Denver (NCAA)
Season totals: 22 games, 9 goals, 11 assists, 12 PIM
Broz scored four goals and two assists in two games this week.
Judd Caulfield
Position: Right wing
Size: 6-4/212
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2019, fifth round
Age: 21
Team: North Dakota (NCAA)
Season totals: 23 games, 7 goals, 4 assists, 10 PIM
Caulfield recorded one assist in two games this week as North Dakota's third-line right wing.
Luke Devlin
Position: Center
Size: 6-2/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, sixth round
Age: 18
Team: West Kelowna Warriors (BCHL)
Season totals: 31 games, 7 goals, 17 assists, 11 PIM
Devlin scored two goals and an assist in two games this week as the Warriors' first-line center. One of his goals was this second-period buzzer-beater that stood to be a game-winner:
Zam Plante
Position: Center
Size: 5-9/161
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, fifth round
Age: 18
Team: Chicago Steel (USHL)
Season totals: 19 games, 3 goals, 8 assists, 2 PIM
Plante was scoreless in two games for a second consecutive week. He's centering Chicago's third line.
Kirill Tankov
Position: Center
Size: 6-1/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 20
Team: SKA-Neva (VHL)
Season totals: 1 game
Tankov suffered a season-ending neck injury in the opening game of the season and required surgery to repair a fractured vertebrae. He is expected to be able to play next season and is no longer wearing a neck brace.
Chase Yoder
Position: Center
Size: 5-10/176
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2020, sixth round
Age: 20
Team: Providence (NCAA)
Season totals: 24 games, 5 goals, 6 assists, 10 PIM
Yoder was scoreless in two games for a second week in a row centering Providence's third line.
DEFENSEMEN
Santeri Airola
Size: 5-11, 163
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2019, seventh round
Age: 22
Team: Ilves (Liiga), KOOVEE (Mestis)
Season totals: 5 games, 2 PIM (Liiga), 23 games, 5 goals, 7 assists, 16 PIM (Mestis)
Airola played two games in the second Finnish league and added one assist.
Isaac Belliveau
Size: 6-2/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, fifth round
Age: 19
Team: Gatineau Olympiques (QMJHL)
Season totals: 30 games, 6 goals, 23 assists, 18 PIM
Belliveau recorded three assists in as many games on Gatineau's top pairing. One of his assists was a primary one that came on an overtime goal:
Nolan Collins
Size: 6-3/194
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2022, sixth round
Age: 18
Team: Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
Season totals: 33 games, 4 goals, 7 assists, 33 PIM
Collins scored a goal and an assist in three games this week on the right side of Sudbury's top pairing:
Collins got into a fight minutes after scoring the goal, but finished an assist shy of the Gordie Howe hat trick in that game. It was Collins' second fight of the season and fifth of his career.
Daniel Laatsch
Size: 6-5/183
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 20
Team: Wisconsin (NCAA)
Season totals: 22 games, 3 assists, 2 PIM
Wisconsin's only action this week was an exhibition game against the U.S. U18 team, and they lost 6-1. Laatsch was scoreless.
Ryan McCleary
Size: 6-2/180
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 19
Team: Portland Winterhawks (WHL)
Season totals: 37 games, 8 goals, 12 assists, 27 PIM
McCleary had a goal and two assists in three games this week on the left side (his off side) of Portland's top defense pairing:
Owen Pickering
Size: 6-4/180
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, first round
Age: 18
Team: Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
Season totals: 32 games, 5 goals, 19 assists, 10 PIM
Pickering recorded two assists in two games this week on the left side of Swift Current's top defense pairing.
GOALTENDERS
Joel Blomqvist
Size: 6-2/183
Catches: Left
Drafted: 2020, second round
Age: 20
Team: Karpat (Liiga)
Season totals: 21 games, 2.29 GAA, .907 SV%
Blomqvist has been injured since Dec. 16 after an in-game collision that included contact to the head. His team hasn't disclosed what the injury is, but if it is a concussion, it's his second one of the season after he previously had one in October from another collision in a game.
Sergei Murashov
Size: 6-0/167
Catches: Right
Drafted: 2022, fourth round
Age: 18
Team: Loko Yaroslavl (MHL), Lokomotiv (KHL)
Season totals: 35 games, 1.18 GAA, .958 SV%, 11 shutouts (MHL), 1 game, 1.00 GAA, .947 SV% (KHL)
Murashov played in two games in the Russian junior league in the last two weeks and went 1-1. He stopped 22 of 25 shots in a loss then 28 of 29 shots in a win.
