Pens add another former first-round pick in Tomasino trade

A look at where Tomasino’s development in Nashville went awry, and what the Pens are hoping to see from him in Pittsburgh.

The Penguins have followed up August trades for Cody Glass and Rutger McGroarty with another deal for a former first-round pick.

The Pens gave up a 2027 fourth-rounder on Monday in order to acquire Philip Tomasino from the Nashville Predators.

So what led the Predators to move on from a 23-year-old forward and former first-round pick for a relatively limited return?

Tomasino skated in 76 games during his rookie 2021-22 season, recording 32 points (11 goals, 31 assists) while averaging under 12 minutes of ice time per night.

That was the most NHL action Tomasino ever would ever see in a single season with the Predators.

He skated in just 72 total games over the following two seasons, and has already spent half of 2024-25 as a healthy scratch.

Heading into his sophomore 2022-23 campaign, Tomasino tried out on a second-line role during Predators training camp but was cut by former head coach John Hynes before the season.

Tomasino was called up to the Predators in February 2023 after an injury opened up a spot in the top six. He stayed in the NHL for most of the rest of the 2022-23 season, averaging more than 15 minutes per game mostly on the second line and finishing the campaign with 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) in 31 games.

The Predators made a head coaching change by hiring Andrew Brunette ahead of the 2023-24 season. This time around, Tomasino earned a spot out of training camp and looked on track to become a full-time NHLer as he opened the season with the Preds.

But the same pattern repeated under Brunette. Tomasino was a healthy scratch in six of the Predators’ first 12 games last season, and his ice time continued to decrease as the campaign went on.

Brunette, who has regularly praised Tomasino’s skill but criticized his ability to fit into the Preds’ system, said in February that the forward’s limited ice time was a matter of “trust.”

“The little things that plague him a little bit, the structures and details of our system, are glaring at times,” Brunette said on Feb. 1 (h/t Paul Skrbina of The Tennessean.) “So you don’t feel completely comfortable and confident in games that are tight. He’s gotten much better as the season has progressed, but for us to lean on him late in games, he needs to find another level.”

Tomasino was sent to the AHL season 11 days later. He was not called up again for the rest of the 2023-24 season.

When asked later in the spring about the forward’s development, Brunette expressed some uncertainty Tomasino would be NHL-ready for the 2024-25 season.

“I think he needs to [take] hold of our identity we’ve created here, and he has to have a little bit more of that in him,” Brunette said in May (h/t John Glennon of the Nashville Post.) “If he can, and if he puts the work in, and he’s relentless, then his skill will take over.

Brunette continued: “At different times this year where he wanted the skill first without the work, I’m not sure he has a chance to play for us next year... I hope he rises to the moment, and I believe he will.”

Tomasino received a regular role on the Preds’ third line during training camp this September, and Brunette said in October that the winger had improved his skating and his strength on the puck over the summer.

“I’ve always said with Phil, if he can get those two things, then when he has the puck, his offensive instincts are there,” Brunette said (h/t Glennon.)

That optimism lasted only until late October. Tomasino once again saw his ice time steadily decrease over the early stretch of the season as he became a regular healthy scratch.

His shift charts through 2024-25 so far tell the story of a player who still had yet to earn the trust of his coach. Tomasino was used sparingly in close games, and saw the most skating time late in blowouts.

The Predators have needed a boost on offense for years. Since the start of the 2021-22 season the franchise has averaged 3.00 goals per game, good for 21st in the NHL. But after Tomasino was unable to establish himself as a trusted option under two head coaches and two general managers, Nashville seems to have decided he wasn’t part of the answer.

The question now is how much leeway Mike Sullivan will give Tomasino as he works to fit into Pittsburgh’s own (so far largely unsuccessful) offensive structure.

Glass played a limited role in 14 games before his concussion diagnosis, and McGroarty made three appearances before being sent to the AHL. Tomasino could be the first of this trio of former first-rounders to get an extended shot at the roster if he can find some chemistry in the Penguins lineup this week.

Tomasino could make his debut in black and gold on Wednesday against the visiting Canucks as the Pens look to snap a streak of three dispiriting losses at home.