In his first NHL game of the season, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Boko Imama enjoyed a milestone.
During a 5-1 road win against the rival Philadelphia Flyers on Monday, Imama recorded 9:39 of ice time, a new career-high.
By one second.
“Was it?” Imama asked while offering a deep belly laugh. “I love it! I’ll take it.”
His previous high-water mark of 9:38 came as a member of the Arizona Coyotes in March of 2023.
While he wasn’t immediately aware of his new career high from Monday’s 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.
“It definitely felt like I was involved and a part of what was going on,” Imama said in Cranberry on Wednesday. “(Coaches and management) have been pretty open with me (about) what they’re looking for. Physically — the fighting — 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.”
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’s contest.
Largely regarded as an enforcer, Imama feels he has added other aspects to his skillset this season.
“Starting even back (with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton), those are things that I’ve been putting a little focus on,” the 29-year-old said. “I thought (Monday) night, it went well and I got rewarded with some fair ice time.”
Imama’s overall offerings with the AHL Penguins led to his promotion.
“(In) conversations with (Wilkes-Barre/Scranton coach Kirk MacDonald), he was playing really well,” Pittsburgh Penguins coach Dan Muse said. “He 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. … Had there not been as much special teams in the game too, his minutes would have been even higher.”
In his second NHL contest of 2025-26, a 4-3 road win against the Lightning on Thursday, Imama’s ice time slipped to only 5:38. Then again, he did spend five minutes in the penalty box due to a fight.
Only 156 seconds into regulation, Imama (6-foot-1, 223 pounds) got the best of Lightning forward Curtis Douglas (6-9, 242 pounds).
Fighting will largely be what Imama is renowned for as a professional hockey player. But he refuses to be limited by that label.
“I don’t see myself as a fighter,” Imama said. “I 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.”
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.
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.
Boko Imama with the penalty shot!! pic.twitter.com/IN2pHLrqHT
— Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (@WBSPenguins) November 27, 2025
“We do practice (shootouts) a lot,” Imama said of the AHL Penguins. “We 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.”
How much longer Imama will keep working at the NHL level is anyone’s 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.
He realizes he needs to continue offering something to keep getting ice time.
“I’m not naïve,” Imama said. ‘There’s a lot of internal competition, there’s a lot of great players in this lineup. There’s a lot of great players also (with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton) that are pushing also to be in this room. I’m not taking any day for granted. So, I’m just going to keep pushing, keep working.
“Every game, just bring something to the table and go from there.”