PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – They had a 1.5 percent chance to land the top pick in the coming 2023 NHL Draft. The Pens will have to settle for the 14th overall selection in the first round.
NHL held its draft lottery on Monday night with the Chicago Blackhawks getting the number one pick, Anaheim second followed by Columbus, San Jose, Montreal, Arizona, Philadelphia, Washington, Detroit, St. Louis, Vancouver, Arizona, Buffalo and the Pens. It’s Pittsburgh’s highest draft pick since defenseman Derrick Pouliot went eighth overall in the 2012 draft.
Due to aggressive trading from previous general managers, the Pens have had only two first-round picks available on draft day since 2014. They used those selections on 2019 F Samuel Poulin (took leave for most of the 2022-23 season due to mental health concerns) and 2022 D Owen Pickering (who struggled in his taste of the AHL in 2023).
The Pens last impactful first-round pick was forward Jordan Staal, picked second overall back in 2006. That was the end of a special run of first round picks starting in 2000 with D Brooks Orpik (1,035 games, two Stanley Cups), 2001-F Colby Armstrong (476 games), 2002-D Ryan Whitney (481 games), 2003-G Marc-Andre Fleury (985 games, 544 wins, three Stanley Cups), 2004-F Evgeni Malkin (1,063 games, 1,229 points, three Stanley Cups), 2005-F Sidney Crosby (1,190 games, 1,502 points, three Stanley Cups).