The Pittsburgh Penguins have acquired forward Emil Bemstrom from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for forward Alex Nylander and a conditional 2026 sixth-round draft pick, it was announced today by President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Kyle Dubas.
Bemstrom is signed through the 2023-24 season and his contract carries an average annual value of $900,000 at the NHL level.
The 24-year-old Bemstrom has spent the 2023-24 campaign split between the Blue Jackets and their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters. With the Blue Jackets, Bemstrom recorded five goals, six assists and 11 points in 32 games. With Cleveland, he notched 10 goals, four assists and 14 points in eight games.
The 6-foot, 195-pound, Bemstrom has spent parts of five seasons in the NHL, all with Columbus. In 204 career regular-season games, he’s picked up 31 goals, 38 assists and 69 points. His best season came in 2022-23 where he set career highs in assists (15) and points (22) in 55 games. Bemstrom has five games of Stanley Cup Playoff experience, all of which came in 2020.
Bemstrom has spent parts of three seasons in the AHL with Cleveland, notching 47 points (26G-21A) in 33 games and is plus-5.
The Nykoping, Sweden native has represented his country on the international level at the 2022 World Championship, where he recorded one goal, four assists and five points in eight games. He also played for Team Sweden at the 2019 World Junior Championship, picking up six points (4G-2A) in five games.
Bemstrom was originally drafted by Columbus in the fourth round (117th overall) in the 2017 NHL Draft.
