Training camp has concluded in the EHEC and the Pittsburgh Penguins have cut down to their 23-man opening night roster. With salary considerations forcing Jared McCann off the roster to begin the season, there were no major surprises in the opening night lineup. Jack Hughes, the second overall pick in the 2019 draft, will break camp with the Penguins.

Hughes played big minutes in the pre-season and had 4 points in the first 3 games, though he struggled as the competition picked up later on. "It's expected that he takes some time to really figure out the league. He wasn't as ready as Kakko but he's a dynamic enough, skilled enough player to step into the NHL right away.We're excited to see what he can do and we will give him the opportunity to play a significant role right away," said head coach Bob Hartley.

It's been a complete overhaul for the Penguins and we're about to see how it looks, as the only players left that played for the team at the end of last season are Robin Lehner and Mattias Backman. Last season, the Penguins were a non-playoff team with an average age of 30.4. This year's 23-man opening night roster has an average age of 25.7, with prospects like Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Moritz Seider and Brett Leason on the cusp of joining the roster (and 23 year old Jared McCann also likely to make the jump once the salary cap allows).

With so many new faces, the Penguins have opted to not name an official captain this season and will wait to see how the locker room develops. In the meantime, it will be Jeremy Roy, Ryan MacInnis, and Ryan Suter wearing A's for the team. With the regular season kicking off October 6th, the finalized opening night roster is as follows:

Forwards (13):
#8 Jack HUGHES*
#11 Brendan PERLINI
#12 Zach SANFORD
#13 Mikael SALMIVIRTA
#14 Jean-Francois JACQUES
#20 David COTTON
#21 Victor OHMAN
#22 Kevin FIALA
#24 Radovan BONDRA
#28 Mark McNEILL
#72 Ryan MacINNIS (A)
#81 Phil KESSEL
#93 Mitchell MARNER

Defensemen (8):
#4 Robert HAGG
#5 Mattias BACKMAN
#15 Nikolas BROUILLARD
#20 Ryan SUTER (A)
#25 Brandon CARLO
#27 Daniel KREJCI
#42 Gustav FORSLING
#97 Jeremy ROY (A)

Goaltenders (2):
#32 Jon GILLIES
#40 Robin LEHNER