Penguins acquire Rathbone in four-player swap

Photo: Arianne Bergeron / Arena du Rocket Inc.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have acquired defenseman Jack Rathbone and forward Karel Plasek from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for defenseman Mark Friedman and forward Ty Glover.

Rathbone had one goal in two weekend games for the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks to begin 2023-24. After missing most of his first pro season due to injury, Rathbone was voted to the AHL All-Rookie Team in 2021-22, when he recorded 40 points in 49 games for Abbotsford.

In 86 career AHL games with Abbotsford, Rathbone has totaled 18 goals and 46 assists for 64 points along with a plus-18 rating. Originally a fourth-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, the Boston native also has two goals and three assists in 28 games in the with Vancouver.

Plasek was a sixth-round choice by Vancouver in the 2019 NHL Draft. He appeared in eight AHL games with Abbotsford in 2021-22 before returning to his native Czechia, where he skated for Olomouc HC last season.

Friedman was scoreless in two games with the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins over the weekend as he began his seventh pro season. In 214 career AHL games with the Penguins and Lehigh Valley Phantoms, Friedman has totaled 11 goals and 56 assists for 67 points.

Philadelphia’s third-round pick in the 2014 NHL Draft, Friedman has played 65 games in the NHL with the Flyers and Penguins, notching four goals and eight assists.

Glover notched seven goals and five assists in 49 games as a rookie with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last season. He played two seasons at Western Michigan University before signing as a free agent with Pittsburgh on Mar. 30, 2022.