Jeff Taylor

June 2019 – Taylor did not get a qualifying offer from the Penguins which means he becomes an unrestricted free agent.  Jokke Nevalainen

June 2019 – The reduction of Pittsburgh’s overstocked free-agent inventory began when Taylor wasn’t given a qualifying offer. That means the Penguins lose his rights, but they don’t care given his sorry pro career to date. It would have been surprising if he had received an offer. Expect more moves like this, as newly announced Hall of Famer Jim Rutherford weeds out the system to make way for better prospects while simultaneously lowering the team’s dangerously high cap total. Mark Allan

May 2019 – By 25, most prospects are in the NHL, are established minor-league regulars or are out of hockey. After another disappointing campaign in the minors, Taylor is closer to that third option. He registered just two goals and six helpers in 42 AHL games, and was demoted at one point to the ECHL. Taylor, one of many RFAs in Pittsburgh’s system, might not be offered a new contract. Mark Allan

February 2019 – For his second straight pro campaign, Taylor has been demoted from the AHL to the ECHL after registering just two goals and three assists in 28 games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Pittsburgh could be forgiven for expecting more from a 24-year-old. Mark Allan

November 2018 – Taylor neither excelled nor disgraced himself in his initial five 2018-19 AHL games, registering two assists but no goals. A plus-5 rating indicates he’s focusing on his play without the puck, never a bad plan for a defender trying to get his coach’s approval. And, while two assists in five games doesn’t seem like much, it’s one more than he had in 20 previous games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Mark Allan

September 2018 – One of five blueliners demoted to the AHL in an 18-player batch, Taylor has got to have a better campaign this time out. He played twice as many games in the ECHL as the AHL. He needs to stick in the AHL this time. Mark Allan

March 2018 – Reflecting his disappointing AHL campaign (one assist in 13 games and minus-2), Taylor was demoted from the AHL to the ECHL’s Wheeling Nailers, where he can easily hold his own. Amassing 19 points in 28 ECHL games, the 23-year-old defenseman makes a case to be promoted to the AHL, although he needs to impress with his next callup. Mark Allan

February 2018 – The second-highest scoring blueliner in Union College history is prospering in his first full pro season with four goals and 15 assists in 28 games. The bad news? Those stats are with the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL. With just one assist in eight AHL outings this campaign, Taylor has to prove himself at that level before Pittsburgh will consider promoting him to the big time. Mark Allan

January 2018 – After notching 12 points in 18 ECHL games for the Wheeling Nailers, the smallish 23-year-old defenseman was promoted to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, where he has one assist in three outings. The seventh-rounder must prove himself in the AHL to ever get a shot at the big time. Mark Allan

December 2017 – The good news is that the smallish but skilled rearguard has six points in his first 10 minor-league games of the season. The bad news? He’s toiling in the ECHL for the Wheeling Nailers after six pointless games late in the 2016-17 AHL campaign. He’ll have to put up points in the AHL before he gets an NHL shot. Mark Allan

September 2017 – Taylor was one of eight players who didn’t make the grade in the second wave of training camp cuts, and was assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the AHL. Smallish but skilled, he has a future as an NHL puck-moving blueliner, but it’s in the future. Mark Allan

June 2017 – After he severely regressed as a junior for Union College, Taylor rebounded strongly with a 38-game, 33-point senior campaign that earned him a two-year, entry-level contract with Pittsburgh that kicks in for 2017-18. The smallish defenseman went pointless in a six-game, late-season AHL amateur tryout, but he’ll expand his pro sample size with Wilkes-Barre-Scranton starting this fall. Pittsburgh will need some young blueliners to step up within the next several seasons, and Taylor should get his chance to fill a puck-moving role. Mark Allan

December 2016 – This Energizer bunny of a puck-moving defenseman makes up for a lack of size and a tendency to be overwhelmed by larger, stronger opponents with a skill set that includes anticipation, quickness, slick passing, determination and a high hockey IQ, at least when on offense. Since playing one USHL season with the Dubuque Fighting Saints, Taylor has ridden a roller coaster in four seasons with Union College. After posting 16 points in a 41-game freshman campaign, he showed great promise with 31 points in just 34 games before focusing on defense in a 12-point, 36-game junior season. The Penguins, who selected him as a seventh-round project, must be happy with a 19-game, 18-point, plus-15 start to his senior year.

Drafted for his offense, Taylor must rein in cowboy instincts that sometimes persuade him to try to stickhandle through an entire team of opponents. Mark Allan