The Pittsburgh Penguins are sadly confined to watching the postseason, and their likelihood of not obtaining a first-round choice is even more distressing. Instead, Pittsburgh supporters will be watching where the San Jose Sharks will deploy the first-round selection that the Pens gave up in the Erik Karlsson deal, as the NHL Draft Lottery draws near.
They could have made better use of it because blueliners Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang, as well as standout forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, won’t be around for much longer. However, they still have the potential and output to provide the Pens with a few more successful seasons, giving the incoming talents in the 2024 draft class the chance to grow and maybe establish themselves as deserving successors.
According to Mike G. Morreale of NHL.com, the Penguins had a 1.5 percent chance of winning the lottery, but even if they had, it wouldn’t have been enough to acquire elite prospect Macklin Celebrini. Because the Penguins finished with the 14th-lowest points total in the NHL, they would have been chosen fourth overall in the lottery on May 7th, which airs on ESPN, TVAS, or SN.
Ironically, the Sharks with the lowest league point total are the ones with the best chance of acquiring Celebrini.
Strangely enough, the Sharks have the highest chance of landing Celebrini because they have the lowest league point total.
The Pittsburgh Penguins will not be selected in the first round of the NHL Draft.
Even though it’s assumed that they won’t select in the first round unless they trade back into the first round OR if the Jake Guentzel trade propels the Carolina Hurricanes to the 2024 Stanley Cup Final, there is still a ton of talent in this draft, so we’ll have to settle for a second-round selection for the time being.
As of May 2, the Pens are selected by Miguel Marques of the WHL in Tankathon’s mock draft. With 74 points in 67 games and 28 goals, Marques scored more than a point per game. Although he still has to fill out his physique, if he can get a job in the NHL, he might be a useful scorer.
The versatile forward Yegor Surin of the MHL is also projected into the system; he already possesses the necessary size to play professionally in North America, so the AHL will likely get in touch with him shortly. Surin’s productivity is also commendable, with 52 points and 22 goals in 42 games throughout the regular season. He can only get better going forward.
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