The Pittsburgh Penguins, parent club of the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, signed Pittsburgh-born defenseman Nate Guenin to a one-year contract, it was announced Friday by Executive Vice President and General Manager Ray Shero.
Guenin, 26, becomes the third Pittsburgh native to join the Penguins organization in the last three seasons, following Bill Thomas and Ryan Malone.
The Sewickley, Pa., native appeared in one game with the Philadelphia Flyers during the 2008-09 season while spending the majority of the year with the Philadelphia Phantoms of the American Hockey League (AHL), posting 14 assists along with 95 penalty minutes in 62 games with the Phantoms this past season.
The 6-foot-2, 210-pound defenseman played 12 career games in the NHL with the Flyers since 2006, recording two assists and six penalty minutes while collecting a plus-2 rating. The gritty blueliner made his NHL debut in Philadelphia versus the New York Islanders January 18, 2007.
In three seasons with the Phantoms, Guenin registered 43 points (seven goals, 36 assists) and 333 minutes in penalties while appearing in 207 career games in the AHL. Guenin collected one assist and a plus-2 rating in 12 career post-season contests with the Phantoms in 2007-08.
Prior to joining the Flyers organization, Guenin played four years with Ohio State University from 2002-2006. Guenin recorded 53 points (six goals, 47 assists) in 151 games and was a two-time recipient of Ohio State’s Ice Club Scholar Athlete Award given to the top student athlete on the team.
Guenin was selected by the New York Rangers in the fourth round (127th overall) of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft.
