The Penguins are finally stocking up their farm system, and they’re doing it in a pretty creative way.
At Friday’s NHL Draft, Pittsburgh turned one first-round pick into multiple shots at finding future stars. It’s a smart strategy, especially since players picked outside the top 10 only have about a 10% chance of becoming NHL standouts.
The wheeling and dealing started when they got the 12th overall pick from the Rangers. They quickly flipped that to Philadelphia, turning it into picks 22 and 31. But they weren’t done – they packaged that 31st pick with their second-rounder to move up to number 24.
GM Kyle Dubas went against the grain with his selections. Instead of following mock drafts or worrying about physical “flaws,” he zeroed in on players who simply produced results.
Take their new prospects Kindel and Zonnon. Sure, one’s considered small and the other isn’t the smoothest skater. But both put up huge numbers last season.
Will that production translate to the NHL? There’s no guarantee. But that’s true for pretty much everyone picked outside the top 10.
The bigger picture here is how quickly Dubas is rebuilding Pittsburgh’s prospect pool. In just two years, he’s brought in three first-rounders plus promising youngsters like Rutger McGroarty and Ville Koivunen through trades.
The most exciting prospect might be goalie Sergei Murashov. He’s showing signs of being a potential franchise cornerstone between the pipes.
McGroarty and Koivunen have already gotten their feet wet in the NHL, looking pretty solid in their debuts.
While Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin aren’t going anywhere, the Penguins do have some valuable trade chips in Erik Karlsson, Bryan Rust, and Rickard Rakell. They’re also sitting on 19 draft picks for 2026 and 2027.
The team might struggle next season, but there’s finally a clear plan in place. The prospect cupboard isn’t bare anymore – and it’s getting fuller by the day.
