He Did It Again!

It might have been a bit of a surprise when the Pittsburgh Penguins announced yesterday that they were sending Alex Nedeljkovic to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for a conditioning stint before he came off long-term injured reserve status on Sunday, but it seems like getting some AHL action for the netminder might be a good idea while the NHL Penguins try to figure out their goaltending situation. After watching the roof cave in on Tristan Jarry during the third period yesterday against the Devils, getting an NHL-ready goalie for next week's games would be a good move. After watching Nedeljkovic tonight, however, this might be a genius move disguised as "a conditioning stint" for the Penguins, especially if they need a little extra offensive firepower!

That last part might be a little confusing when talking about goalies, but Alex Nedeljkovic's conditioning stint with the WBS Penguins turned into a big night as she took the ice against the Providence Bruins. Let's go to the third period with the Penguins leading by a 3-2 score late in the game where Nedeljkovic stole the show.
I'm not sure if the Providence Bruins always have their cameras situated on the moon when broadcasting games, but that camera angle they used to start the clip leaves a lot to be desired. Nevertheless, Alex Nedeljkovic's shot went down the ice and came to a stop in the Bruins' net at 18:56 of the third period, pushing the score to 4-2. The final 64 seconds would be played with no further incidents as the Penguins won 4-2 over the Bruins, Nedeljkovic earned the win with 17 saves, and helped his own cause with his SECOND AHL goal!

Yes, you read that correctly: Alex Nedeljkovic is the first goaltender to score two goals in AHL history! This goal is actually his third professional goal as Nedeljkovic also scored in the ECHL, so it seems like he scores no matter where he's needed to stop pucks! If you're asking, he scored as a member of the Charlotte Checkers back on March 10, 2018 against the Hartford Wolfpack for his first AHL goal, and his ECHL goal was scored as a member of the Florida Everblades back on December 30, 2016 against the Atlanta Gladiators!

I'm sure the NHL Penguins weren't expecting his offensive game to flourish in his conditioning stint, but Alex Nedeljkovic likely will be called up on Sunday once his LTIR status expires. He may get thrown directly into the fire with the Penguins hosting the Western Conference-leading Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday in the back half of their back-to-back weekend, but we'll see what the Penguins do with their goalie-turned-sniper with games against the New York Rangers on Wednesday and the Buffalo Sabres on Friday.

Congratulations to Alex Nedeljkovic, the AHL's top goal-scorer for goalies in history, on his goal tonight! Might we see more goals from Nedeljkovic in the future? It seems very possible with how he shoots the puck!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!