Story by
Top 25 Penguins Prospects, #25-21; Hidden Gems & Honorable Mentions
- Story by
- Top 25 Penguins Prospects, #25-21; Hidden Gems & Honorable Mentions
Top 25 Penguins Prospects, #25-21; Hidden Gems & Honorable Mentions
In the nearly decade-long existence of Pittsburgh Hockey Now and its predecessors, which were poorly built, self-published webpages, there has not been a Pittsburgh Penguins prospect list that needed to go beyond the top 10. There may have been more than 10 prospects, but never were they threats to make it to the NHL.
As PHN began compiling its annual list, we quickly realized there were well more than 10 prospects this year. In fact, there were more than 15, and–wow–more than 20.
Advertisement
Having 13 picks from the 2025 NHL Draft buttressed the numbers, as have a few trades over the past 18 months that have added to the bounty, including getting three prospects ( Ville Koivunen , Vasily Ponomarev, and Cruz Lucius ) in the Jake Guentzel trade.
Towards the back of the Penguins ' prospect list, there are goalies with special abilities and defensemen who flew well under the radar but were noticeable at the most recent Development Camp.
Read More: Penguins Development Camp Analysis: The Winners & Nice Surprises
The players not on the list are fading prospects who are hoping to achieve a turnaround. So, no, you won't see Sam Poulin or Valtteri Puustinen on the Top 25 list. Six years after being drafted, they still have a chance to play in the NHL, but their prospect status has been traded for young veterans or hopeful veterans.
Advertisement
Nor did Vasily Ponomarev make the list. Ponomarev bolted for the KHL after some lackluster performances in the NHL. The gut feeling is that both the team and the player were a little disappointed by the other.
The prospect list criteria are rather simple. The player must be under 25 (so no Jack St. Ivany either), and we're grading on a subjective mixture of readiness and projected impact. For example, Ben Kindel was drafted 11th overall and should be expected to provide the largest impact of the prospects, but defenseman Owen Pickering will also have some impact and be ready much sooner. So, Pickering could rate ahead of Kindel on this list.
The top rankings will be out in a few days.
For the bottom of the list players below, we'll not project when they could hit the NHL. These players will need a couple of years to establish their path, or maybe more.
Advertisement
Honorable Mentions
There are a handful of players who could be in the top 25. Their hopes of making it all the way to the Pittsburgh Penguins are no less real than the prospects at the back of the prospect list. However, we're projecting their ceilings to be lower, and they get the Honorable Mention.
Mac Swanson: Mighty Mac. After putting up big numbers with the Fargo Force of the USHL, he played last season at the Palace on the Prairie, the University of North Dakota. His biggest impediment is being listed at 5-foot-8 and looking much shorter than that. He had 18 points (2-16-18) in 38 games as a freshman. Swanson was the Penguins' 2024 seventh-round pick. He didn't stand out at camp, but he made a few plays during the scrimmage that showed his playmaking skills.
Finn Harding: Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas mentioned him by name at his season-ending press conference as one of the few defenseman prospects in the system. However, Dubas also noted he has a long way to go. Harding was the Penguins' 2023 seventh-rounder. Harding also made his pro debut with Wheeling, playing three games without a point.
Advertisement
Carter Sanderson: Another late-rounder, Sanderson was the Penguins' sixth-round pick in the 2025 Draft. He showed well in the Development Camp this month. He just completed his first year in the USHL, registering only 11 points, but he had a little spark in camp, and he could grow into something worth keeping an eye on.
Daniel Laatsch: The big 6-foot-6 defenseman was a seventh-round pick from the University of Wisconsin. He'll turn pro this year after signing a two-year entry-level contract in March. He's not an offensive threat, and he's not a great skater, though he's not bad, either. Laatsch is stay-home posiitonal defender.
Top 25 Penguins Prospects, 25-21
No. 25: Ryan Miller
Miller looked like a polished product at the Development Camp. The Portland Winterhawks center had an on-ice poise and maturity that nicely complemented good skating, high intensity, and hockey IQ. He made an impact for his team during the camp scrimmage. Whether it was intentional or luck, the Penguins selected a handful of players who play a gritty game, and Miller was one. He was the first of three Penguins fifth-round picks in the 2025 Draft.
Advertisement
No. 24: Quinn Beauchesne
The second of the Penguins' 2025 fifth-rounders, Beauchense, also had a productive camp and was noticeable in drills and the scrimmage. The right-shot defenseman has solid size, at 6-foot, 190 pounds, and skates well. He's only played two seasons of junior hockey–denoting how young he is–but he upped his offensive output to 24 points (6-18-24) in 49 games last season. He's ahead of others with better resumes at No. 24 primarily because of how visible he was at camp.
No. 23: Chase Pietila
The Penguins' 2024 fourth-round pick left Michigan Tech after two seasons and played 12 professional games last season. He played three with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and nine for the Wheeling Nailers, where he had three assists. Pietila is a right-shot defenseman with size. He's 6-foot-3, 195 pounds and a smart defenseman. Though he wasn't a standout at the recent camp, he didn't need to be. The Penguins saw enough to sign him to his ELC despite some college eligibility remaining.
Advertisement
No. 22: Cruz Lucius
Lucius comes from a hockey family, though his older brother just retired from pro hockey due to a genetic condition . The Arizona State product has flashed much greater potential than he's consistently shown.
"He's got a high-end skill set. I think his shot, his puck skills, are elite," said Penguins director of player development Tom Kostopoulos after the Development Camp.
"Ithink he knows this is a huge year for him. He has to prove what kind of player he can become. And he's been working hard throughout the summer, and I know he's going to push himself. So this will be a big season for him."
Advertisement
After transferring from Wisconsin to Arizona State, Lucius had an underwhelming 10 points (2-8-10) in 19 games.
No. 21: Melvin Fernstrom
Fernstrom was another piece of the return from the Vancouver Canucks when the Penguins traded Marcus Pettersson and Drew O'Connor to Vancouver. Of course, the big prize for the Penguins in that trade was the New York Rangers ' first-round pick.
Fernstrom was the Canucks' third-round pick in 2024, but he hasn't yet had his breakout moment. He's a slow skater with good offensive instincts, but he'll have to improve his skating to be able to use those gifts in professional hockey. The Penguins are sending him back to the Swedish Elite League for another season–last season, he had 17 points (8-9-17) for Orebro HK .
Advertisement
Perhaps the Penguins' player development and performance staff can retool to help him add speed to augment his game.
The post Top 25 Penguins Prospects, #25-21; Hidden Gems & Honorable Mentions appeared first on Pittsburgh Hockey Now .
