In his first NHL game of the season, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Boko Imama enjoyed a milestone.<\/p>\n
During a 5-1 road win against the rival Philadelphia Flyers on Monday, Imama recorded 9:39 of ice time, a new career-high.<\/p>\n
By one second.<\/p>\n
\u201cWas it?\u201d Imama asked while offering a deep belly laugh. \u201cI love it! I\u2019ll take it.\u201d<\/p>\n
His previous high-water mark of 9:38 came as a member of the Arizona Coyotes in March of 2023.<\/p>\n
While he wasn\u2019t immediately aware of his new career high from Monday\u2019s game, he definitely knew he was playing more than he usually does. After all, over the 33 NHL games he has played in his career, he has averaged only 5:53 of ice time per contest.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt definitely felt like I was involved and a part of what was going on,\u201d Imama said in Cranberry on Wednesday. \u201c(Coaches and management) have been pretty open with me (about) what they\u2019re looking for. Physically \u2014 the fighting \u2014 we all know that I can bring that element. But there is also a lot of detail in my game, defensive zone, my play on the wall. I felt like I was pretty good.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Penguins recalled Imama from Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton of the American Hockey League (AHL) on Monday morning and placed him on the fourth line during that night\u2019s contest.<\/p>\n
Largely regarded as an enforcer, Imama feels he has added other aspects to his skillset this season.<\/p>\n
\u201cStarting even back (with Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton), those are things that I\u2019ve been putting a little focus on,\u201d the 29-year-old said. \u201cI thought (Monday) night, it went well and I got rewarded with some fair ice time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Imama\u2019s overall offerings with the AHL Penguins led to his promotion.<\/p>\n
\u201c(In) conversations with (Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton coach Kirk MacDonald), he was playing really well,\u201d Pittsburgh Penguins coach Dan Muse said. \u201cHe earned that opportunity because of his five-on-five play. He showed it (Monday) night, too. He made some good plays coming out of the (defensive) zone. He did a really good job there in the defensive zone. \u2026 Had there not been as much special teams in the game too, his minutes would have been even higher.\u201d<\/p>\n
In his second NHL contest of 2025-26, a 4-3 road win against the Lightning on Thursday, Imama\u2019s ice time slipped to only 5:38. Then again, he did spend five minutes in the penalty box due to a fight.<\/p>\n
Only 156 seconds into regulation, Imama (6-foot-1, 223 pounds) got the best of Lightning forward Curtis Douglas (6-9, 242 pounds).<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Fighting will largely be what Imama is renowned for as a professional hockey player. But he refuses to be limited by that label.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t see myself as a fighter,\u201d Imama said. \u201cI can fight anybody, for sure. But I see myself as an energy player. I can get pucks to the net, be good on forechecks, be responsible in my own end. And just being a great teammate too, I think it goes a long way. I take a lot of pride in those little things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Imama showed off what he can do with a puck with Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton in a spectacular fashion earlier this season. During a 6-3 road win against the rival Hershey Bears on Nov. 26, he opened the scoring in that contest on a penalty shot.<\/p>\n
Weaving his way into the offensive zone, Imama approached the cage and elevated a flamboyant backhander by the glove of goaltender Garin Bjorklund, who looked flummoxed by the daring maneuver.<\/p>\n
Boko Imama with the penalty shot!! pic.twitter.com\/IN2pHLrqHT<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton Penguins (@WBSPenguins) November 27, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cWe do practice (shootouts) a lot,\u201d Imama said of the AHL Penguins. \u201cWe have fun after practice, have a lot of different types of games (drills). You try moves. You see what is working for you, what is not. That was a move where I was able to practice on my goalies (with Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton), not to make fun of them. But I just gained confidence doing it in practice. When I came down during the game, I kind of saw that left side open, so I just tried to sneak one in there with a backhand and it worked.\u201d<\/p>\n How much longer Imama will keep working at the NHL level is anyone\u2019s guess. Given that the bulk of his professional career has unfolded at the AHL level, he is fully aware that his time will be limited with the NHL club.<\/p>\n He realizes he needs to continue offering something to keep getting ice time.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not na\u00efve,\u201d Imama said. \u2018There\u2019s a lot of internal competition, there\u2019s a lot of great players in this lineup. There\u2019s a lot of great players also (with Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton) that are pushing also to be in this room. I\u2019m not taking any day for granted. So, I\u2019m just going to keep pushing, keep working. <\/p>\n \u201cEvery game, just bring something to the table and go from there.\u201d<\/p>\n Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com<\/a>. <\/p>\n