Penguins Acquire Forward Blake Bennett from Calgary Wranglers for Future Considerations

Blake Bennett spent three full professional seasons putting up numbers that made him one of the ECHL's most productive forwards. Now the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins are betting that production translates up the organizational ladder.

The Penguins acquired the 27-year-old forward from the Calgary Wranglers on March 13 in exchange for future considerations. Bennett will not suit up for the AHL club immediately; instead, he was loaned to Wheeling, the Penguins' ECHL affiliate, where his scoring punch could bolster a roster that simultaneously shipped out forward Cole Tymkin, defenseman Eric Parker, and a player to be named later to the Rapid City Rush.

The numbers that prompted the move are substantial. Bennett enters the deal tied for ninth in ECHL scoring this season, having posted 22 goals, 29 assists, and 51 points in 56 games with Rapid City. He ranked second on the Rush in all three offensive categories and led the team with six power-play goals. His minus-17 rating is the one blemish on an otherwise compelling offensive resume.

Context makes those current figures even more impressive when stacked against his career arc. In his first full professional season, 2023-24, Bennett set Rapid City's ECHL single-season goals record by scoring 35 times in all 72 regular-season games, finishing with 63 points. He followed that campaign by splitting the 2024-25 season between Europe and North America: nine games in Denmark produced nine points, 16 games in Germany yielded four more, and upon returning to Rapid City he delivered 27 goals, 25 assists, and 52 points in just 37 games. Across 180 career ECHL games, all with the Rush, Bennett has accumulated 85 goals, 86 assists, and 171 points.

The Grand Island, New York native came to professional hockey after three seasons at American International College, where he led the Yellow Jackets in goals and points as both a sophomore and junior. He finished his AIC career with 43 goals, 29 assists, and 72 points in 80 games before joining Rapid City late in the 2022-23 season for his professional debut.

The trade was announced the same day Wilkes-Barre/Scranton hosted the Hershey Bears at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza, a Friday night game with a 7:05 p.m. puck drop that kept the AHL club's attention split between the transaction wire and the ice. For Wheeling, the arrival of a player with Bennett's scoring pedigree at this stage of the season signals clear intent heading into the stretch run.