Penguins A to Z: There isn't a wrong choice with Joel Blomqvist
With the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 2023-24 season coming to an end without any postseason action, the Tribune-Review will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 49 individuals signed to an NHL contract — including those whose deals do not begin until next season — with the organization, from fourth-line center Noel Acciari to reserve winger Radim Zohorna.
This series is scheduled to be published every weekday leading into the NHL Draft on June 28.
(Note: All contract information courtesy of Cap Friendly.)
Joel Blomqvist
Position: Goaltender
Catches: Left
Age: 22
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 187 pounds
2023-24 AHL statistics: 45 games, 25-12-6 record, 2.16 goals against average, .921 save percentage, one shutout
2023-24 AHL postseason statistics: Two games, 0-2 record, 3.49 goals against average, .849 save percentage, zero shutouts
Contract: In the first year of a three-year entry-level contract with a salary cap hit of $886,667. Pending restricted free agent in 2026.
(Note: Blomqvist is exempt from waivers for any transaction to a minor league affiliate.)
Acquired: Second-round draft pick (No. 52 overall), Oct. 7, 2020
This season: Given the cavalier approach the Pittsburgh Penguins have had with regard to future assets for the better part of a decade and a half, Joel Blomqvist was something of a unicorn for the franchise entering the 2023-24 campaign.
That’s to say he was (and remains) a legitimate prospect who could have a significant impact on the future of the Penguins.
The main question regarding Blomqvist entering the season was how would the native of Finland adjust to his first full season in North America after playing professionally on the larger rinks in his home country over parts of the previous four seasons.
Blomqvist largely silenced any concerns about his transition to this continent right from the start of the season. In his first 19 games of the season, Blomqvist posted an 11-4-2 record, as well as a 2.16 goals against average and .920 save percentage. That success earned him a selection to the American Hockey League’s All-Star Classic.
A little bit of Blooma magic ✨ pic.twitter.com/mLHHW94yb0
— x-Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (@WBSPenguins) October 22, 2023
The high point of Blomqvist’s first full season in North America came March 13 when he recorded his first career AHL shutout by making 23 saves in a 3-0 home win against the rival Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
— EN Videos (@ENVideos19) April 29, 2024
A five-game winning streak for Blomqvist between March 24 and April 12 helped the Penguins clinch a playoff berth for the first time in two years and landed Blomqvist on the AHL’s second All-Star and All-Rookie team. His 25 wins were one short of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s franchise record for wins by a rookie goaltender. That mark of 26 is held by Pittsburgh Penguins icon Marc-Andre Fleury.
Over the course of the season, Blomqvist — selected with the draft pick acquired in the 2020 trade that sent former starter Matt Murray to the Ottawa Senators — was also recalled to the NHL on two occasions under emergency roster conditions when maladies struck the incumbent goaltenders in November and April.
Things came to an abrupt end for the Penguins and Blomqvist as they were swept in the first round of the Calder Cup playoffs by the Phantoms, falling in a best-of-three series, 2-0.
The future: Blomqvist’s outstanding season only galvanized hopes he could one day be the franchise’s top goaltender. In fact, he might have accelerated how quickly those hopes could be realized.
In his season-ending press conference April 19, Pittsburgh Penguins president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas said he remained committed to Tristan Jarry as the Penguins’ goaltender of the present but acknowledged backup goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic — who started the team’s final 13 games of the regular season and was a major component of a valiant but futile push for a playoff spot — could be allowed to walk as a pending unrestricted free agent due to the success of Blomqvist.
The Penguins can re-sign Nedeljkovic or bring in another veteran backup as a free agent this offseason, allowing Blomqvist to further his development as a starter with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton next season. Or they can turn to Blomqvist as the backup and perhaps even let him compete with Jarry for playing time.
There really isn’t a wrong choice with Blomqvist.
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
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