Penguins place Sebastian Aho, Boko Imama on waivers

The Pittsburgh Penguins placed defenseman Sebastian Aho and forward Boko Imama on waivers Sunday according to Puckpedia.

Should they go unclaimed by 2 p.m. Monday, the Penguins can assign them to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League.

The NHL’s deadline for teams to submit a season-opening roster is 5 p.m. Monday. As of Sunday afternoon, the Penguins have 30 players on their roster, according to the NHL’s media website. That figure includes Aho and Imama as well as a handful of players who will likely open the season on either injured reserve or long-term injured reserve such as forwards Blake Lizotte (concussion) and Matt Nieto (left knee) plus goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic (undisclosed).

NHL rosters are limited to 23 active players from the opening of the season until the trade deadline which is scheduled for March 7.

Aho’s exposure to waivers is something of a mild surprise as he was signed to a two-year contract in July that carries a salary cap hit of $775,000.

But that transaction was made in the wake of a strong preseason by defensive prospect Harrison Brunicke, a second-round draft pick (No. 44 overall) in June.

Still eligible to play at the junior level, the 18-year-old Brunicke may play in up to nine NHL contests during the regular season before the first year of the three-year entry-level contract he signed in July begins. If the Penguins return him to the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League before he plays 10 NHL contests, that contract will “slide” — or begin — with the 2025-26 season.

This preseason, Aho, a left-hander who can play the right side of a defensive duo as well, skated in three games and had no points with three shots.

Exclusively a member of the New York Islanders in his five-year career before this offseason, the 28-year-old Aho (5-foot-10, 176 pounds) appeared in 58 games last season and scored nine points (two goals, seven assists) while averaging 16:23 of ice time per contest.

Expected to serve as an enforcer, Imama, 28, was a free agent signing this past offseason, agreeing to a one-year, two-way contract with a salary cap hit of $775,000.

In three games this preseason, the left-handed Imama (6-1, 221 pounds) had one assist, five penalty minutes and one shot.

Entering his eighth professional season, Imama has only played in 15 career NHL games. Six of those came last season as a member of the Ottawa Senators. In those contests, he had no points and recorded seven penalty minutes while averaging 5:35 of ice time per contest.

Note: The Penguins had a scheduled day off from on-ice activities on Sunday.