With junior seasons, the NCAA season, and the NHL and AHL regular seasons all wrapping up, probable and locked in playoff teams are beginning to shore up organizational depth in hopes of bolstering rosters for playoff runs.
And the Pittsburgh Penguins’ organization made a few moves on Wednesday to do just that.
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The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS) Penguins – Pittsburgh’s AHL affiliate – got their hands on an intriguing reinforcement when forward Mikhail Ilyin was re-assigned from the KHL’s Severstal Cherepovets to WBS. In addition, WBS signed forward Ryan Miller and defenseman Quinn Beauchesne – both from the 2025 draft class – to amateur tryout agreements (ATOs).
Ilyin, 21, has been one of the better Under-22 forwards in the KHL for the last few years. In 68 games this season, he registered 14 goals and 44 points, largely playing top-line minutes. The 6-foot-3, 191-pound forward – drafted in the 5th round (142nd overall) in 2023 – signed a three-year entry-level contract (ELC) with the Penguins ahead of the 2025-26 season, but he opted to go back to the KHL and was loaned to Severstal for its entirety.
Despite his loan to the KHL, he is still in the first season of his ELC. Ilyin has already joined the WBS Penguins, as he debuted at practice on Wednesday.
Beauchesne, 19, was selected in the fifth round (148th overall) in 2025, and the young blueliner has continued to build on what is already a relatively impressive profile for a player selected in the fifth round. He registered seven goals and 35 points in 56 games for the Guelph Storm of the OHL this season, and he is an excellent skater with good offensive instincts.
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He was issued a late-season two-game suspension for a slash to the head of London Knights forward Ryan Brown during a March game between the two squads.
Miller, 18, was also selected in the fifth round (130th overall) in 2025 and put together an impressive season for the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL with 30 goals and 75 points in 65 games. He also had a 19-game scoring streak earlier this season, and he committed to the University of Denver for the 2026-27 season.
Beauchesne, a right defenseman, and Miller, a center, will fight for spots on a crowded WBS roster that has already clinched a Calder Cup Playoff berth. WBS’s right side features Phil Kemp, Finn Harding, Chase Pietila, and Harrison Brunicke, who joined WBS after the Kamloops Blazers were eliminated from the WHL playoffs.
Penguins Defensive Prospect Assigned To Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
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