Avalanche steal defenseman from the Penguins on Saturday.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have lost one of their defenseman just prior to the start of the regular season.

According to a report from National Hockey League insider Chris Johnston, the Pittsburgh Penguins will be without defenseman John Ludvig moving forward after attempting to pass him through waivers for the purpose of assigning him to their American Hockey League affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins. Johnston reports that he has been claimed by the Colorado Avalanche, although it is unclear if any other teams around the league also submitted a waiver claim.

Ludvig, a former 3rd round pick (69th overall) of the Florida Panthers at the 2019 National Hockey League Entry Draft saw all of his NHL experience come with the Penguins last season, playing 33 NHL games for the Penguins on his way to scoring 3 goals and adding 2 assists for a total of 5 points. He finished that campaign with a plus minus rating of -12.

Prior to that, Ludvig had spent his entire professional hockey career in the AHL, playing for the Syracuse Crunch, the Charlotte Checkers and also playing 4 games for the Penguins AHL affiliate last season as well.

Waivers are usually fairly safe at this time of year given that most teams around the league are looking to make cuts rather than additions to their respective rosters ahead of the regular season, but it seems clear the Avalanche felt that Ludvig was worthy of a spot on their roster.

Should the Avalanche wish to send Ludvig to their own AHL affiliate, they will also be forced to put him on waivers which would in theory give the Penguins, or any other team in the NHL, an opportunity to claim him from the Avalanche.