Colin Swoyer had been working toward this moment for awhile.
The Penguins signed the 24-year-old undrafted defenseman out of Michigan Tech to an entry-level contract last month, a one-year deal that begins next season.
Swoyer reported to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on an amateur tryout contract two days later. In between his five online classes to finish his finance degree, he's been working out and practicing with the team, studying film and attending the team's meetings to become acclimated with the systems, waiting for the day he would be deemed prepared enough to make his professional debut.
After nearly two full weeks of that work, Swoyer finally got in the lineup for Wilkes-Barre's game against the division-leading Charlotte Checkers on Wednesday, a 4-1 loss.