Whether Penguins Keep Harrison Brunicke On NHL Roster May Come Down To One Thing

The situation for the Penguins has quickly become complicated on the forward front, as injuries are already piling up. Blake Lizotte , Oliver Okuliar , and Ben Kindel are week-to-week, while Justin Brazeau and Bryan Rust - injured in Pittsburgh's final pre-season game, a 3-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres - are still being evaluated. On the blue line, Ryan Graves is also day-to-day and being further evaluated.

Prior to the plethora of injuries, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that Pittsburgh would end up keeping 14 forwards and seven defensemen on their NHL roster at the end of camp. However, with less certainty regarding personnel on the forward front, there's no guarantee that they won't elect to keep eight defensemen instead.

And, right now, the Penguins have eight defensemen left on their roster — including 20-year-old Harrison Brunicke .