With the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 2023-24 season coming to an end without any postseason action, the Tribune-Review will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 49 individuals signed to an NHL contract — including those whose deals do not begin until next season — with the organization, from fourth-line center Noel Acciari to reserve winger Radim Zohorna.

This series is scheduled to be published every weekday leading into the NHL Draft on June 28.

(Note: All contract information courtesy of Cap Friendly.)

Emil Bemstrom

Position: Center

Shoots: Right

Age: 24

Height: 6-foot

Weight: 195 pounds

2023-24 NHL statistics: 56 games, 16 points (eight goals, eight assists), 11:08 of average ice time per game

2023-24 AHL statistics: Eight games, 14 points (10 goals, four assists)

Contract: In the final year of a two-year contract with a salary cap hit of $900,000. Pending restricted free agent this upcoming offseason.

(Note: Bemstrom is eligible for arbitration.)

Acquired: Trade, Feb. 22, 2024

(Note: The Penguins acquired Bemstrom from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for forward Alex Nylander and a conditional sixth-round draft pick in 2026. If Bemstrom had scored six goals with the Penguins by the end of the season, that draft pick could have been upgraded to a third-round selection. Those conditions were not met as Bemstrom only scored three goals with the Penguins.)

This season: A fourth-round draft pick (No. 117 overall) of the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2017, Emil Bemstrom was in many ways a fine representation of that franchise in recent years.

Curiously enticing but ultimately unsatisfactory.

Blessed with a strong shot and offensive acumen — he led the Swedish Hockey League in goals as a 19-year-old in 2018-19 — Bemstrom always seemed like a viable option for a top-six role for a Blue Jackets team that always seemed to be in an uphill battle for playoff contention.

Yet despite those skills, he never managed to nail down a regular role on the top two lines of the unimpressive Blue Jackets over parts of five seasons. And when he was placed in a bottom-six role, he largely languished in those duties.

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As the Blue Jackets went through an organizational maelstrom throughout 2023-24 following the bungled hiring-and-firing of head coach Mike Babcock before the season opened, Bemstrom once again failed to make any kind of significant impact to open the season.

A healthy scratch in four of the Blue Jackets’ first 16 games, Bemstrom had only four points (three goals, one assist) in 12 games out of the gate.

After being waived and going unclaimed by Nov. 16, Bemstrom was assigned to the American Hockey League’s Cleveland Monsters and was highly productive at that level, scoring nearly two points per game.

Recalled to the NHL roster on Dec. 7, Bemstrom had a quick burst upon his return, picking up a goal and an assist in a 7-3 road loss to the New York Islanders that same night.

But beyond that, Bemstrom carried little momentum from Cleveland to Columbus after the recall. In total, he mustered only 11 points (five goals, six assists) in 32 games with the Blue Jackets in 2023-24.

After Jarmo Kekalainen was fired as Blue Jackets general manager on Feb. 13, team president John Davidson took over the role on an interim basis and his first notable transaction in that capacity was to trade Bemstrom to the Penguins nine days later.

Making his debut on Feb. 27, Bemstrom acclimated to his new surroundings by scoring a power-play goal while primarily being deployed on the third line during a 7-6 home win against the Philadelphia Flyers.

That success was something of a false hope, however, as Bemstrom wound up scoring only three goals with the Penguins, matching the number of times coach Mike Sullivan made him a healthy scratch. In total, Bemstrom had five points (three goals, two assists) and averaged 8:47 of ice time per contest in 24 games with the Penguins.

The high point of his mostly unremarkable tenure with the Penguins thus far was a game-winning goal on a breakaway during a 5-2 road win against the New York Rangers on April 1.

Bemstrom’s 2023-24 came to an end with him sidelined for the final game of the regular season on April 17 due to a concussion.

The future: A pending restricted free agent, Bemstrom could very well not receive a qualifying offer and be allowed to walk as an unrestricted free agent.

While president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas and others in the hockey operations might have been intrigued by Bemstrom, Sullivan and the coaching staff were not overly impressed as he was routinely buried on the fourth line and largely kept away from both special teams units.

There is plenty of skill in Bemstrom’s game, particularly when it comes to shooting the puck. But Bemstrom, who turns 25 on June 1, has rarely been consistent enough in that area and doesn’t offer enough in other realms of the game to earn a steadier or more prominent role in any lineup, even for non-playoff teams like the Blue Jackets and Penguins.

It’ll be curious to see how Penguins management approaches Bemstrom’s restricted free agent status this offseason. But based on the limited scope of 24 games, a change of scenery offered little benefit to Bemstrom.

Follow the Penguins all season long.

Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.

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