NHL Draft Day 2: Penguins add 2 defensemen, goalie with trio of picks in 3rd round
With the 73rd overall pick in the third round of the NHL Draft Saturday, the Pittsburgh Penguins selected defenseman Charlie Trethewey from USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program.
Trethewey, 17, is a right-shooting prospect who hails from Ellicott City, Md.
A 6-foot-2, 201-pound defenseman, he will begin his collegiate career at Boston University this fall.
This past season, Trethewey played 63 games, scoring six goals with 14 points.
In 2023-24, he appeared in 52 games with the Program, scoring 12 goals with 23 assists.
Trethewey is an alumni of the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite youth development program, having played his U14 and U15 seasons with the club.
Earlier Saturday, the Penguins traded back into the second round, choosing defenseman Peyton Kettles from the Swift Current Broncos of the Western Hockey League.
CHARLIE TRETHEWEY HOW YOU FEELIN'?#USAvsCAN | #WU17 pic.twitter.com/Dqw751RTRC
— USA Hockey’s NTDP (@USAHockeyNTDP) November 11, 2023
With the 84th overall pick, the Penguins chose an 18-year-old goalie, Gabriel D’Aigle of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League’s (QMJHL) Victoriaville Tigres, for whom he has now played three seasons.
A 6-foot-4, 207-pound prospect who catches left-handed, D’Aigle was born in Sorel-Tracy, Quebec, same as Marc-Andre Fleury.
The Penguins gained the pick on Aug. 13, 2024, along with forward Cody Glass and a sixth-round draft pick in 2026 in a deal that sent forward Jordan Frasca to the Predators.
D’Aigle appeared in 55 games last season, going 16-33-2 with a 4.52 goals-against average and .883 save percentage.
He also set a team record for assists by a goalie with eight.
In 2023-24, he was 13-6-2 with a 3.87 GAA and .879 save percentage.
Check out #Tigres goalie Gabriel D’Aigle’s old school classic #POKECHECK in the shootout. #TopProspect #2025NHLDraft @OctagonHockey pic.twitter.com/5Zt9BLiBIg
— Allan Walsh???? (@walsha) February 17, 2025
The Penguins entered Saturday originally set to pick at No. 85 overall, as well, but traded that selection to the Vegas Golden Knights for their 91st (third-round) and 154th (fifth-round) selections.
The No. 85 pick originally came Aug. 13, 2024, along with a second-round pick in 2026 in a deal that sent the No. 51 overall pick (second round) and a fifth-round pick in 2026 to the Blues.
With the 91st selection, the Penguins chose defenseman Brady Peddle, an 18-year-old left-shooting defenseman from the Waterloo Black Hawks (USHL).
Peddle is 6-foot-3, 191 pounds and is committed to Michigan State.
Last season, his first with Waterloo, he appeared in 62 games, scoring three goals with seven assists.
Sharp Shooting Peddle ????
Goal scored by #10 Peddle, assists from #72 Hawkins and #73 Brady at 19:12 of the Kwik Start second period.
DSM-2 WAT-3#DSMvsWAT #WBH #PaintTheTownRed???? pic.twitter.com/YBHf24HYoa
— Waterloo Black Hawks (@BlckHawksHockey) February 15, 2025
In the fourth round at No. 109 overall, the Penguins selected Travis Hayes of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
In 65 games, he posted 51 points (21 goals, 30 assists).
Hayes
A right-handed shot, Hayes (5-foot-11, 169 pounds) is the brother of Penguins forward prospect Avery Hayes.
With the 105th overall selection in the fifth round, the Penguins went with center Ryan Miller from the WHL’s Potland Winterhawks.
A 5-foot-11, 174-pound prospect, he scored 16 goals with 15 assists last season for Portland.
In 2023-24, over 44 games with the Winterhawks, he scored six goals with nine assists.
Miller is a left-handed shot and is committed to Denver University for 2026-27.
He hails from Medicine Hat, Alberta.
The Penguins acquired this draft pick from the Washington Capitals last year in exchange for forward Lars Eller.
Ryan Miller came up about as CLUTCH as one possibly can ???? pic.twitter.com/PD4Ivwq18C
— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) October 6, 2024
Later in the fifth round at No. 148 overall, the Penguins selected defenseman Quinn Beauchesne of the OHL’s Guelph Storm.
In 49 games last season, the right-handed Beauchesne (6-foot, 184 pounds) scored 24 points (six goals, 18 assists).
Beauchesne
A variety of injuries cost him 19 games during the 2024-25 season.
This selection was acquired on July 1, 2024 in a trade that sent forward Reilly Smith to the Rangers.
At No. 154, also in the fifth round, the Penguins selected forward Jordan Charron.
Last season with Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, the left-handed Charron (6-foot-3, 184 pounds) scored 21 points (10 goals, 11 assists).
Charron
He is committed to St. Lawrence University at the NCAA level for the 2026-27 season.
At No. 169 overall in the sixth round, the Penguins chose left wing Carter Sanderson of the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks.
Sanderson, a 6-foot-1, 194-pound prospect, is from Pierre, S.D., and is committed to North Dakota for 2026-27.
Last season with the Lumberjacks, he appeared in 48 games, contributing five goals with six assists.
Sanderson is a left-handed shot.
Carter Sanderson ties it up ???? pic.twitter.com/FWdoC3cDmY
— Muskegon Lumberjacks (@MuskegonJacks) March 22, 2025
The Penguins’ 13th and final pick of the 2025 draft came in the seventh round (No. 201 overall), which they used to select center Kale Dach, who is preparing to begin play in 2025-26 with the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen.
A left-handed shot who stands at 5-foot-11, weighing 172 pounds, Dach is committed to Penn State for 2026-27.
This last two seasons, he played with the Sherwood Park Crusaders of the British Columbia Hockey League.
Dach gets his 75th point at the same time Loranger gets his 88th point! #OneCru pic.twitter.com/E17j6dEcUt
— Sherwood Park Crusaders (@SPcrusaders) March 2, 2025
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
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