Rocky Mountain High: Penguins Nick Pryor Departs
Nick Pryor, who served as the Penguins’ director of amateur scouting since joining the black-and-gold in July 2021 as part of Ron Hextall’s staff, has accepted the same position with the Avalanche. Replaced in essence by long-time Kyle Dubas associate Wes Clark, who was named vice president of player personnel a couple of weeks ago.
Strength and conditioning coach Alex Pianosi has joined the Avs as well.
I thought it odd, intriguing and perhaps more than a bit reflective of the younger Pryor’s abilities that he remained an integral part of the Pens’ staff even after his father, Chris Pryor, who served as our assistant GM under Hextall, was fired as part of the management purge in April 2023.
For Nick, it must’ve seemed more than a bit surreal to work for the management team that replaced his dad. However, not only did Pryor remain on board, he oversaw the past two drafts under Dubas and, by most accounts, unearthed some potential gems.
Before joining the Pens, he’d spent the previous eight seasons as part of the Flyers’ scouting staff, again surviving a purge that cost Hextall and his father their jobs in 2018.