O'Connor Returns To Pittsburgh Aiming To Stick With The NHL Club

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. - The Pittsburgh Penguins added several depth forwards in free agency over the summer to solidify the team's overall depth at the position, but also to challenge their in-house prospects to put them in a situation where they would have to bust the proverbial door down to make the NHL team out of training camp.

For Drew O'Connor, he found himself on the wrong side of a numbers game - not to mention his waiver exemption status makes him a prime candidate to be the odd man out - as he was assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton prior to the start of the season.

But after a strong week in the American Hockey League (AHL) this past week, coupled with the NHL club's recent disappointing road trip in Western Canada, O'Connor is the 'next man up' as the Penguins called up the Chatham, New Jersey native Monday morning prior to Tuesday night's home game against the Boston Bruins.

"There's definitely a lot of good players, a lot of good forwards, so it's something that can only make you a better player having to fight for those spots rather than just kind of get it handed to you," O'Connor said of not making the NHL roster out of training camp, adding, "So I think, for me, it's just kind of working on my game, embracing the opportunities I have here, try to make the most of it and see where it takes me."

Last Wednesday night against Cleveland - an AHL Penguins 5-1 win over the Monsters - was a bit of a breakout game for O'Connor who found himself goalless and with two assists through five games entering that Wednesday game.

"I think I maybe got away from game a little bit the last couple games," O'Connor told InsideAHLHockey.com after a season-high two-goal, three-point night. "I just tried to keep it simple."

Penguins head coach JD Forrest agreed with O'Connor's sentiment almost to a tee when he was asked about the forward's progression entering his third pro season.

"He started a little bit slow [this season]. I think he was fighting it," Forrest said of O'Connor's first couple of games this season in the AHL, but also saying Wednesday night's performance was 'his best game for us so far this year'.

Having played both on the wing and at center, O'Connor has been used almost exclusively at the AHL club's first line center position this season - getting ample time on both special teams units and playing big minutes in all three zones of the ice. The shift to playing center has O'Connor focusing on a few more parts of his game.

"Working as a center now, definitely working on face-offs. The penalty kill has been another point of emphasis this year for me," O'Connor said, explaining the further nuances of playing in the middle this season versus playing more on the wing previously.

"I think, playing center right now, just kind of trying to find those areas of the ice a little bit better where I can help out and get the puck more, support my defensemen and I think all those areas but just continuing to improve my overall game."