According to Seth Rorabaugh of the Tribune-Review, the Pittsburgh Penguins are unlikely to issue forward prospect Raivis Ansons his $813K qualifying offer this summer. Ansons would become an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career and would be a candidate to return overseas to continue his professional career.
The Penguins selected Ansons with the 149th overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft from the QMJHL’s Baie-Comeau Drakkar. Ansons scored 13 goals and 35 points in 60 games during his draft year, and Pittsburgh believed he could be a long-term candidate in the bottom-six of the team’s forward group.
After a year in his native Latvia and a return trip to the QMJHL, Ansons signed his entry-level contract with the Penguins in 2022 and played for their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Unfortunately, his time in the AHL has been nothing short of a disaster, as Ansons has only managed five goals and 14 points in 87 career contests. Coupled with an undisclosed injury that limited him to nine games this year, the Penguins organization is seemingly ready to move on from one of their recent draft choices.