Penguins Have Options With Their 1st Round Pick

The NHL Draft will take place on June 26 and 27 at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. Last summer, the Pittsburgh Penguins were expected to have a pick in the top five of the 2026 Draft; however, after making the playoffs this season, the Penguins will pick 22nd overall. Pittsburgh has some young talent on the rise and a group of core veterans that are still performing at a high level. President of hockey operations and general manager Kyle Dubas is looking to bring his team even closer to contention this offseason, so what will he do with his first-round pick?

Will Dubas Deal His Pick?

Dubas has done a good job of setting the Penguins up for future success since he has been in Pittsburgh. Because of this, he has some options when it comes to his first-round pick. For starters, he has some young talent that will be NHL-ready very soon, or, in some cases, already are.

Ben Kindel, the Penguins’ 11th-overall pick in last year’s draft, made the team as an 18-year-old and had a breakout rookie season. In 77 games, he scored 17 goals with 18 assists. Despite his age, he plays a very mature game with good playmaking skills and strong forechecking. Egor Chinakhov was traded to the Penguins in late December by the Columbus Blue Jackets. He has good speed and, at 25 years old, is just coming into his prime as a top-six winger. 

Twenty-two-year-old goaltender Sergei Murashov had another impressive season in Wilkes-Barre with a goals-against average (GAA) of 2.20 and a save percentage (SV%) of .919. He will more than likely make the jump to the NHL next season. Defenseman Harrison Brunicke is another young prospect who will be pushing for a full-time roster spot with the Penguins next season. 

Dubas also has a group of veterans that are still producing at a high level. Sidney Crosby just completed his 21st consecutive season above a point-per-game. Evgeni Malkin had 61 points in 56 games this season, and Erik Karlsson played the best hockey of his Penguins career.

Finally, it looks like there will be some potential in the trade market this summer. The NHL cap is rising, but some teams may still run into cap space issues. If the Dallas Stars re-sign Jason Robertson, they may run into a problem trying to re-sign forward Mavrik Bourque. Bourque played in 82 games this season and scored 20 goals with 21 assists. Both the Anaheim Ducks and the Montreal Canadiens have a crop of young players and would probably be open to making a deal for a seasoned veteran like Bryan Rust or Rickard Rakell. 

Dubas Has Options

Dubas has put himself in a position where he has options. The free agent market does not look like it will be that great this summer, but the trade market looks very promising. There will be other teams interested in some of the same players the Penguins will be interested in, so acquiring young talent won’t come cheap. 

The Penguins have plenty of cap space and plenty of prospects. They also have a high second-round pick thanks to the Winnipeg Jets. If Dubas chooses to leverage his first-round pick, he has the extra assets to set himself apart in a trade deal. He also has enough prospects and draft capital that if he were to give some away in exchange for a star player, it would not impact his team that much. Pittsburgh’s front office has no doubt been doing their homework since their season ended on whether or not dealing their first round pick is a good option.