PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Saying they have need at every position and can’t think about it fit with the roster over the next couple of years, team president Kyle Dubas announced the Pens selected 18-year-old center Brayden Yager with the 14th overall pick in the first round.
The 6’, 165-pound right-handed shot was ranked highest (10th overall) by The Hockey News and lowest (33rd overall) by Dobber Prospects with the overall ranking of 17th. He played the last three seasons at Moose Jaw in the Western Hockey League scoring 69 goals with 86 assists in 154 games with 23 points in 20 playoff games.
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Elite Prospects said of Yager-“The puck absolutely explodes off his stick, no matter how compromised his body positioning appears to be during release. He rips it off either leg in just about way: two-touch, one-timer, and catch-and-release. His inside leg wrister is his signature shot, tipping his weight over his outside edge while somehow keeping his chest up and exploding through the shot. He takes every single puck directly into his shooting pocket, prepared for the next play.”
A few scouts said they were concerned about having too many ‘off games’ in his WHL career.
Yager is only the third Pens first-round pick since 2014: defenseman Owen Pickering (2022, 21st overall), forward Sam Poulin (2019, 21st overall). Pens have five more picks over the next six rounds, the next coming in round three on Thursday.
Pens will hold prospect camp Saturday through Monday at the UPMC Lemieux Complex in Cranberry with the potential of Yager being on the ice as the Penguin for the first time.
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