PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – It was brought up almost as a throw away line Friday night in an interview with the Pens first round pick, not that anyone really thought it might happen, but it did. After drafting Liam Ruck with the 22nd overall pick in the first round, the Pens drafted his twin brother Markus with the 39th overall pick on Saturday morning.
Pens draft Canadian forward Liam Ruck in 1st round
Like Liam, Markus is a forward who played last year with Medicine Hat in the Western Hockey League. His numbers were comparable finishing with 108 points (21 goals) in the regular season in 2025-26 and 13 more points (4 goals) in 15 playoff games. He had four times as many points this past season as the year before (62 games, 8 goals, 21 assists).
Just going by the numbers, Markus is more the facilitator as his 87 assists led the WHL. TSN’s hockey expert Craig Button ranked Markus as the 16th best overall prospect in the draft.
Both of the brothers are committed to play at the University of North Dakota this coming season.
Forward Markus Ruck joins brother Liam, who was taken in the 1st round
Forward Markus Ruck joins brother Liam, who was taken in the 1st round
