Penguins get 14th overall pick in NHL Draft
As expected, the Pittsburgh Penguins will have the 14th overall selection in the NHL Draft next month.
The league held its draft lottery Monday, and the Penguins, who finished tied with the Buffalo Sabres for the 13th-fewest points (91) in the NHL during the regular season, wound up with their highest pick since 2012 when they acquired the No. 8 overall pick from the Carolina Hurricanes and selected defenseman Derrick Pouliot.
While the Penguins were involved in the lottery, they were not eligible to land the top three selections per league rules. They had a 1.5% chance to move up to the fourth overall selection, but those slim odds were not surmounted.
In addition to their first-round pick, the Penguins are scheduled to have selections in the third, fifth, sixth and seventh (twice) rounds. This year’s draft is June 28 and 29 in Nashville, Tenn.
The Chicago Blackhawks wound up with the top selection and presumably will select forward Connor Bedard of the Western Hockey League’s Regina Pats. Long viewed as the top overall player available in this year’s draft, Bedard led the WHL with 143 points (71 goals, 72 assists) in 57 games in 2022-23.
Following the lottery, the first 16 picks are scheduled to be:
1.) Chicago Blackhawks
2.) Anaheim Ducks
3.) Columbus Blue Jackets
4.) San Jose Sharks
5.) Montreal Canadiens
6.) Arizona Coyotes
7.) Philadelphia Flyers
8.) Washington Capitals
9.) Detroit Red Wings
10.) St. Louis Blues
11.) Vancouver Canucks
12.) Coyotes (via Ottawa Senators)
13.) Buffalo Sabres
14.) Pittsburgh Penguins
15.) Nashville Predators
16.) Calgary Flames
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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