Kaleva: NHL: Emil Pieniniemi, who has been shelved, denies disappearance claims - "It's not true"

Pittsburgh Penguins’ shelved Emil Pieniniemi, 20, has now commented on his recent decision that has stirred up the hockey community, to not comply with the organization’s decision to send the defender to the ECHL, known as the “farm’s farm.”

Back in Oulu, Pieniniemi denies in an interview with Kaleva that he pulled a disappearing act on his team.

– That is not true. I was in a hotel in Wilkes-Barre for a couple of weeks waiting for things to progress. The team paid for my accommodation, and they were also informed when I said I was leaving for Finland, Pieniniemi explained his situation.

Pieniniemi and his entourage see playing in the Liiga as a better option for the young man’s development than playing in the ECHL.

– It was somewhat of a shock. My goal, however, was to play in the AHL, and I had done my best at the training camp. I also feel that I could play well in the AHL, but the competition there is tough, Pieniniemi adds.

The defender has no hard feelings towards the parent club, the Penguins.

– The team has always taken good care of me. As I said earlier, we haven’t found common ground yet. I am confident that things will be resolved, and I will get to play as soon as possible, the defender currently training in Oulu states.

Pieniniemi is a 3rd round draft pick of the Penguins from the summer of 2023. The defender, who moved from Kärpät to North America last season, has had a productive season in the junior league OHL, where he played 60 regular season games last season with stats of 10+50=60.