The Pittsburgh Penguins are bringing three veteran players to training camp on professional tryout contracts, including a defenseman with a reasonable chance at competing for a top-six spot, the team announced Wednesday.

The Penguins invited defensemen Mark Pysyk and Libor Hajek and forward Austin Wagner to camp.

Pysyk, 31, has the pedigree to compete with Chad Ruhwedel, Mark Friedman and Ty Smith for the right-side spot on the third defense pair behind Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang.

A first-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres in 2010, the 6-foot-1, 198-pound Pysyk has been a valuable two-way defenseman in an 11-year NHL career. He has played five seasons in two stints with the Sabres, four years with Florida and one season with Dallas. He signed with Detroit last summer but missed the entire season after suffering an Achilles injury in training camp.

He has been used extensively on the penalty kill, especially in Florida, and had his best statistical season in 2019-20, recording nine goals, nine assists and a plus-4 rating in 58 games with the Panthers.

Wagner, 26, could throw his hat into the ring to compete for a job in the Penguins’ overhauled bottom six.

A 6-1, 195-pound forward drafted in the fourth round by Los Angeles in 2015, Wagner had his best season with the Kings as a rookie in 2018-19, posting 12 goals, 21 points and a plus-2 rating in 62 games. He slipped down the depth chart from there, spending most of the last two seasons in the AHL before being sent to Chicago at the trade deadline.

Known as a strong skater, he has 23 goals and 42 points in 178 career NHL games.

Hajek, 25, has had a mostly disappointing NHL career since being drafted in the second round by Tampa Bay in 2016 and moved to the New York Rangers in a deal that sent Ryan McDonough and J.T. Miller to the Lightning in 2018.

A 6-2, 209-pound stay-at-home type, the left-handed Hajek has four goals and 12 points in 110 games with the Rangers over parts of the last five seasons.

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