Penguins defensive prospect Daniel Laatsch is more than a big body

Daniel Laatsch is Wisconsin nice.

Pardon … Wis-kahn-sin.

Does he prefer Daniel or Dan? Danny, even?

“Whatever you prefer,” he replies diplomatically.

And if you happen to extend your hand to shake his after a hockey practice, he’ll politely decline, explaining his hands are sweaty having been in gloves for the previous 50 minutes.

A native of Altoona on the western side of Wisconsin, the 23-year-old Laatsch is as deferential as he is tall (6-foot-5).

But he realizes he will need to be more aggressive if he is to reach the NHL as a defensive prospect with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

“Just trying, for myself, to put on a little weight and a little extra strength to have that to win a little bit more battles in the corners,” said Laatsch, who is listed at 183 pounds. “Because my game is being hard in the defensive zone. Just trying to be competitive that way.”

The Penguins, under former general manager Ron Hextall, selected the left-shooting Laatsch in the seventh round (No. 215 overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft partially because of his size.

Four years later, current management — as directed by president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas — is also intrigued by his dimensions. That’s why he was signed to a two-year entry-level contract in March.

But he’s not some lumbering brontosaurus on skates who simply seeks contact. His stick work as a defender excites Penguins director of player development Tom Kostopoulos.

Dan Laatsch with a great defensive play! pic.twitter.com/8cdp9pYDMx

— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey) February 4, 2024

“Love the size, love the kid,” Kostopoulos said July 3 during the team’s prospect development camp in Cranberry. “Really great kid. He’s ready to dive in and work. His reach and his stick detail is something special. His willingness to kill penalties, block shots, defend in the corners (is) something that we really like.”

Laatsch routinely put those attributes on display for the past four seasons with the University of Wisconsin. But his senior season was cut short after 22 games and came to a halt Jan. 10 because of a right hip injury.

Shortly after that, he underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum that had hobbled him for a few months.

Laatsch indicated everything is fully healed, including his confidence in his once-achy hip.

“It was a little more not (having) full trust in it,” Laatsch said. “You kind of feel it on little movements you shouldn’t be feeling it on. Just like a pinched nerve. It was more (a lack of) comfort and not a lot of trust in making a hard stop and pivot. A psychological game a little bit along with the pain, too.”

“I probably could have kept grinding through it, the pain, day-to-day. But I felt it wasn’t the best for the future.”

Even with the injury and the downtime to recuperate, Laatsch was assured by Penguins management he would receive a contract offer.

“We had talks the previous year a little bit,” Laatsch said. “Kind of knew how they felt about me. Obviously, it’s great having their trust that I would get back to full (strength) and be back to my normal game. They were great throughout the whole process.”

The pain is behind him, and life as a professional is what lies ahead for Laatch. He will open next season with either Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League or Wheeling of the ECHL.

Being a stout defender will be his route to the NHL through physical play and, most importantly, nice stick work.

“That was just something that was instilled in me when I was young,” Laatsch said. “I’ve always known that I might not be the quickest with my size and frame. So, there’s other ways that I’ve got to make up for that.

“Having my reach and my stick, utilizing it and not just wasting it is something that I try to keep in my head. It puts everybody under stress when you’ve got a stick near your stick or on your stick. You’ve got to go around it. I just try to utilize it and try to make forwards uncomfortable.”