Penguins Head Coach Dan Muse Explains Last Minute Decision to Scratch Harrison Brunicke vs. the Anaheim Ducks

The Pittsburgh Penguins have had an exciting start to the season despite heading into the year with low expectations.

A lot of excitement for fans has come from the debuts of Harrison Brunicke and Ben Kindel who unexpectedly made the opening night roster.

However, tonight, the Penguins will be without Brunicke who will be a last minute scratch against the Anaheim Ducks.

While Letang's return is fantastic news for the Penguins it comes at the price of Brunicke being a surprise healthy scratch.

After the decision was announced, head coach Dan Muse explained why he felt giving Brunicke the night off was the right choice.

During his pre-game press conference, Muse admitted that the night off against the Ducks was a scheduled part of Brunicke's development plan from the time he made the opening night roster.

Muse and the front office do not want to expose Brunicke and Kindel to more than they can handle early on both physically and mentally leading to the night off.

For fans it will likely be disappointing not to see Brunicke who has played well in the lineup and rewarding him for that effort.

At the same time, the organization is looking to develop Brunicke to be the best player he can in his prime and not necessarily just for this season.

Once this game ends, it will be interesting to see if Brunicke re-enters the lineup on Thursday against the Los Angeles Kings.