600-Game Veteran Officially Demoted To The AHL By The Pittsburgh Penguins and Kyle Dubas

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Tom Banks
November 9, 2024 (1:49 PM)

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The Pittsburgh Penguins picked up a much needed victory on Friday, and now they've made a move with veteran Matt Nieto for a conditioning stint.

After a poor start to the 2024/25 season, the Pittsburgh Penguins picked up a much needed victory against the Washington Capitals on Friday night, and with both Erik Karlsson and Evgeni Malkin scoring, it may just be what this team needs to get going.

A day later however, the team have made a very intriguing roster move, as they have sent 600-game NHL veteran Matt Nieto to the AHL's Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins.

The move corresponds with the return of Tristan Jarry from his conditioning stint in the AHL, and after Nieto was limited to just 22 games a season ago due to injury, it makes sense to allow him to get his feet under him before giving him a significant role in the NHL.

Unfortunately for Nieto, the numbers haven't been fantastic in the NHL in recent years, as he has not topped 20 points since the 2014/15 season, but given the experience, it makes sense that the Penguins will look to give him an opportunity.

With this move from Nieto, we see the return of Jarry, who was demoted in October after a horror start to the season, and in his AHL stint, he posted a 2.16 GAA alongside a .926 save percentage, showing that he's ready to contribute at the NHL level again.

After the win, the Penguins now have a 6-8-2 record through 16 games played, and while it's not a great start it's still early in the season, with plenty of time for this veteran team to turn it around and get back into Stanley Cup Playoffs contention.