August 32-in-32: Pittsburgh Penguins
Tyler Ball
2024-08-22
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The 32-in-32 Series is an annual event here at DobberProspects! Every day in August, we will bring you a complete breakdown of a team’s draft and insights into their off-season movements thus far. Following this up in September, we will dive into every team’s prospect depth chart with fantasy insights and implications for the upcoming seasons. Check back often because we plan on filling your hockey withdrawal needs all off-season long!
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The Pittsburgh Penguins have had a relatively quiet offseason compared to the 2023 offseason. After trading for Erik Karlsson in the summer of 2023, the team struggled and ultimately missed the playoffs. Due to the trade, the Penguins were left without a first-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. Despite their lack of high-end draft capital, they were able to come away with a few new prospects with potential to make an impact in the future.
When it comes to the NHL roster, the Penguins were quite a bit more active. They added several pieces to their forward group to bring a much needed sense of depth that was lacking in the 2023-24 season. Their main roster additions are highlighted by former 6th overall pick Cody Glass, veteran forward Kevin Hayes, and defenseman Sebastian Aho.
Draft Recap
Round Two, 44th Overall – Harrison Brunicke, RHD
The Pittsburgh Penguins had to wait until day two of the NHL Draft to make a selection. At 44th overall they picked Harrison Brunicke, a tall rangy defenseman out of the Kamloops Blazers in the WHL.
Harrison Brunicke brings a very similar style of game to 2022 1st round pick Owen Pickering. Both are massive smooth skaters who flash the ability to create on breakouts. The best part of Brunicke’s game at the moment is his rush defending. The combination of his skating, size, and ability to break up plays with his stick make him a valuable defensive asset.
Projecting Harrison Brunicke into the future he will need to improve his offensive and transition game to take things to the next level. He shows moments of deception and higher level puck skill. However, he lacks consistency in being involved in those kinds of plays overall and his point total reflected his lack of involvement offensively.
Heading into his draft plus one year hopefully Brunicke can take a step forward offensively and start to open his creativity without losing his defensive skills that made him a top pick in the first place.
Round Two, 46th Overall – Tanner Howe, LW
The Penguins doubled up in the second round taking Tanner Howe the captain of the Regina Pats in the WHL. Howe was an incredibly interesting case for the 2024 NHL Draft. He spent the previous season playing on a line with Connor Bedard and looking like one of the best players in the draft in his draft minus one season.
During his draft year without Connor Bedard there was regression particularly on the stat sheet. Howe went from 85 points down to 77 points in a similar amount of games. As far as Tanner Howe’s skillset he is the ultimate support player. He is a physical hard working forward that goes to the right areas of the ice. He fights for position in front of the net and is known for being a high character player.
In his draft year Tanner Howe did tend to be a player that would go games without showing much flash or a bag of high end tools. He would be in the right spots to make plays but the overall skill would sometimes let him down. With that said Howe has a high hockey IQ and used it to find teammates and be a good facilitator of play despite being on a pretty bad Regina team.
Now that he has been drafted Tanner Howe will need to continue refining his skills and finding exactly what will be the thing that carries him to the NHL. Despite being undersized Howe has shown willingness and ability to play physically. If he can pair that part of his game with other things to round out his toolkit he could be a successful NHLer in the future.
Round Four, 111th Overall – Chase Pietila, RHD
After selecting twice in the 2nd round the Penguins would wait until the 4th round to pick again. With the 111th overall pick they would start a trend that would remain for much of the rest of their 2024 draft selecting overage players by taking Chase Pietila.
Pietila is a 20 year old prototypical size defenseman who spent the 2023-24 season in the NCAA with the Michigan Tech Huskies. As a Freshman at Michigan Tech Chase Pietila had a successful campaign with 22 points in 40 games. He brings size, physicality, and a two-way game to the Penguins system. Pietila is a solid player who is right handed which is always highly coveted throughout the NHL. With his offensive production jump going from the USHL to the NCAA there is potential for more offense to be hidden underneath.
The biggest barrier for Chase Pietila when it comes to developing in the Penguins system and one day fighting for a roster spot will be his age. He is already 20 years old at this point and is similar in style to other players that the Penguins have selected higher even in the 2024 Draft like Harrison Brunicke. If Pietila doesn’t set himself apart sooner he could fall behind some of these younger prospects with more development track in front of them.
Round Six, 175th Overall – Joona Vaisanen, RHD
Continuing on the trend of overage defensemen the Penguins took Joona Vaisanen who spent the 2023-24 season in the USHL with the Dubuque Saints. In his first year in North America Vaisanen had a productive offensive campaign with 40 points in 53 games.
On the ice Vaisanen is going to be a puck moving offensive first defenseman. He is only six feet tall which means he will have to rely on his offensive skills primarily. During his season in Dubuque and at the Penguins prospect camp last month Vaisanen showed an ability to be crafty and creative with the puck. His skating and fluidity are high-end tools at this point in his development path. These will be the most important skills for him to leverage as he moves to the next levels. He could possess the skills to run an NHL powerplay and play as a depth defenseman at 5-on-5 if his development continues upward.
Once again age could prevent Joona Vaisanen from becoming a top end of the lineup type of prospect for the Pittsburgh Penguins. The fact that he has more offensive excitement and potential gives him an easier path to potentially finding a role in the NHL. He will need to continue shoring up his defensive game and the offensive game needs to stay consistent.
Vaisanen will be heading to the NCAA this upcoming fall to play for the Western Michigan Broncos.
Round Seven, 207th Overall – Mac Swanson, LW
In the 7th round the Pittsburgh Penguins took a big swing on offensive upside by selecting Mac Swanson out of the Fargo Force in the USHL. Swanson tore up the USHL tallying 77 points in 55 games. Generally this would land a first year draft eligible player like Mac Swanson in the first round the only problem being he is 5 ‘7.
Swanson throughout his year in the USHL showed an ability to produce despite his lack of size. His hockey IQ as well as all around skills are what set him apart the most. Swanson’s handles, vision and passing are the standouts to his toolkit. He has a great feel for the game and how to set his teammates up for success. His hockey IQ also extended to his positioning without the puck leading him to plenty of plays where he found soft ice and was able to rack up 26 goals. He continued his ridiculous offensive season in the USHL playoffs where he was the points leader with 17 in 12 games and took home playoff MVP.
Mac Swanson’s biggest barriers to finding success could be his lack of size mixed with his less than dynamic skating. Oftentimes when smaller players succeed in the NHL it is due to their excellent skating or strong physicality despite lack of physical height. Unfortunately for Swanson these are not things he possesses at the moment which means he will need to rely on his vision and playmaking to get him to the NHL. If Mac Swanson is not on a scoring line he could struggle to stick much like Kailer Yamamoto. But if he can find more of a secondary game to fall back on he could have a fantastic NHL career.
Swanson will be heading to the University of North Dakota where he will play as an 18 year old Freshman.
Round Seven, 223rd Overall – Finn Harding, RHD
The Penguins rounded off their 2024 NHL Draft by selecting another right handed defenseman. This time they went to the OHL bringing in Finn Harding from the Mississauga Steelheads.
Harding is another overage defenseman to add to the prospect pool for the Penguins. Unlike the two previous defenseman talked about earlier Harding is just 19 and one year removed from his traditional draft year. Harding is a defense first defenseman with a powerful stride. With the puck he isn’t particularly flashy but makes solid reliable plays to get the puck on the sticks of his team’s playmakers. He is a player who self admittedly had a bit of a late start on the development curve starting his OHL career a year later than most of his peers.
With this in mind his development track is actually pretty promising. If he is looked at as a late bloomer then his production of 34 points in 68 OHL games becomes a lot more impressive. Either way Harding will need to learn to become more assertive on the ice. Both with and without the puck especially in transition he would wait for the play to come to him instead taking initiative.
Going into his third year with the Steelheads Finn Harding could be relied on as one of the top pairing defensemen. If he can continue his steady growth in his play and improve on taking more control in games the Penguins might have an underrated player to look at a year from now.
Offseason Moves
Incoming:
Cody Glass – Trade
Kevin Hayes – Trade
Sebastian Aho two-year contract
Blake Lizotte two-year contract
Anthony Beauvillier one-year contract
Matt Grzelcyk one-year contract
Brayden Yager three-year entry level deal
Filip Kral one-year, two-way contract
Jimmy Huntington one-year, two way contract
Bokondji Imama one-year, two way contract
Nate Clurman one-year, two way contract
Mac Hollowell one-year two-way contract
Outgoing:
Jeff Carter – Retired
Pierre-Olivier Joseph – Signed with the St. Louis Blues
Jansen Harkins – Signed with the Anaheim Ducks
Jack Rathbone – Signed with the Buffalo Sabres
Vinnie Hinostroza – Signed with the Nashville Predators
Dmitri Samorukov – Signed in the KHL
Xavier Ouellet – Signed in the KHL
Taylor Fedun – UFA
Radim Zohorna – Signed in Switzerland
Maxim Cajkovic – Signed in Czechia
Dillon Hamaliuk – Signed in Slovakia
Re-Signed:
Alex Nedeljkovic two-year extension
Jack St. Ivany three-year, two-way contract
Jonathan Gruden two-year, two-way contract
Valtteri Puustinen two-year contract extension
Samuel Poulin two-year, two-way contract extension
Final Thoughts
The Pittsburgh Penguins remain in a strange spot somewhere between being a true Stanley Cup contender and on the verge of a rebuild. As long as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang remain, the team will continue trying to build for the present.
The difference over the last couple of seasons is that the Penguins have started to consider the future drafting top talents and taking some swings on players with upside. This year’s draft showcased this strategy by taking swings on Harrison Brunicke and Mac Swanson.
Even with their lack of high end draft assets the Kyle Dubas and the Penguins built up a solid 2024 draft class that should be commended. Now it is on the development staff to take these players from promising prospects to players that fight for roster spots with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Thank you for reading! Make sure to check back next month for the next installment of the Pittsburgh Penguins 32-in-32 series. If you’re looking for more Pittsburgh Penguins and prospect content follow me on X/Twitter @Tylerball497.
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