Penguins sign Brian Boyle and Matt Bartowski to tryout contracts

In lieu of PTO szn, the Penguins have made their mark. In was announced on Friday night that Pittsburgh will add center Brian Boyle and defenseman Matt Bartowski to their training camp roster on pro tryouts.

Boyle, 36, is a veteran of 805 career NHL games on seven different teams. He’s perhaps best remembered for his days with the New York Rangers from 2009-14. He last played with the Florida Panthers in 2019-20, electing to sit out for the COVID shortened season last year.

Boyle has the size the Pens need and have been seeking at a listed 6’6 and 245 pounds. But he’s also long in the tooth and hasn’t been in an NHL game in a year and a half. He’ll have his chance to show if he has anything left in the tank.

The other signing has local ties with Matt Bartowski joining the team of his childhood. Bartowski has played 256 career NHL games from 2011-21 with four different teams. Last year he only played one NHL game with the Minnesota Wild and spent 23 games with the Iowa Wild.

Bart has only played three NHL games since the start of the 2018-19 season, all of which he’s been with the Minnesota organization. He’s a left handed defenseman, which is curious since the team is loaded with options now, but between trade rumors and ever-present injury concerns, one never knows what could unfold with the Pittsburgh blue line.

No exact word from the Pens on training camp start dates, which will be some point later this month. The Pens had been sending their prospects for the past several years (besides 2020 COVID issues) to Buffalo for a pre-camp prospects tournament, but they aren’t this year.