The best part of the year starts on Saturday.
The Penguins on Saturday open their annual prospect development camp at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex. There are four days of practices, followed by a four-on-four tournament on Wednesday. The full schedule can be found here.
There will be 49 prospects in attendance -- a mix of their own prospects from junior, college, Europe and the ECHL -- pretty much everyone who doesn't have substantial AHL experience -- along with a number of undrafted free agents looking to earn contracts out of the camp.
I wanted to put together a list of the 10 attendees I'm most interested in watching. This isn't a "top 10" list, it's not ranked, and it's definitely not a list of the only players I plan on writing features on. It's just 10 prospects who I'm more interested in watching in this setting, because they have something to prove, there haven't been many opportunities to see them before, or other reasons like that.
With that all in mind, here's the list.
SERGEI MURASHOV
Remember how I said this list of prospects I'm interested in watching wasn't ranked? Just this one is. Murashov is No. 1. He's the can't-miss prospect in this setting.
The Penguins' 20-year-old Russian goaltending prospect was a late addition to the roster, only being added to the group on Friday. This will be the first time since the Penguins drafted Murashov in the fourth round in 2022.
After Murashov was drafted, he had an exceptional 2022-23 season in the MHL -- the Russian junior league. He appeared in 42 games with Lokomotiv's affiliate, posting a 1.65 goals-against average and a .944 save percentage. He recorded 11 shutouts, two shy of an MHL record. He won the MHL's award for the top Russian junior goaltender, and was one of three finalists for the league's top player. But with no real opening at the KHL level for his club, he spent most of the season in the MHL. He only played one KHL game that season, making 18 saves on 19 shots in a win.
It was much of the same for Murashov this year, spending most of the season in the junior league. He posted a 2.02 goals-against average and a .930 save percentage in 34 games. But he got a longer look in the KHL this year and fared well in his six games, recording a 1.84 goals-against average and a .925 save percentage.
Murashov is the Penguins' lone prospect from Russia attending this camp, and that's probably because he's the only one without an active KHL contract. Forward prospects Mikhail Ilyin and Kirill Tankov have another year left on their deals, but Murashov is currently unsigned.
I would still be surprised to see Murashov stick around in North America this season -- outside of Tristan Jarry and Alex Nedeljkovic, there will be Joel Blomqvist, Filip Larsson and Taylor Gauthier in the minors. Those three alone already should be getting big AHL minutes, but not all will because of the logjam. Adding one more of their top prospects to the mix wouldn't help the situation. Best case scenario would be that Murashov impresses in this camp, heads back to Europe for a full year in a top league -- whether that's the KHL or a league in another country -- then he comes to North America in 2025-26 when there should be more opportunity for playing time. When NHL teams draft players out of Russia, their signing rights never expire, so there's no rush to bring Murashov over. He's still so young. Him even being here for this camp is a great sign regardless.
OWEN PICKERING
This is a big year for the Penguins' top defense prospect -- he's now eligible to play in the AHL full-time, and will almost surely start the season in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. But as Kyle Dubas said in his season-ending media availability ... it's not out of the question that Pickering could see AHL time.
"I expect those two younger kids, (Brayden) Yager and Pickering, to push," Dubas said. "Have a huge summer, assert yourself. We've shown here in this last stretch, if you're a young player and you're willing to push through the summer, you got a massive opportunity. You can have a shot here with us. That's what we need, desperately."
The big thing with Pickering is just going to be seeing where he is size and strength-wise this year. He came into his first development camp in 2022 weighing only 175 pounds, and weighed in at 194 pounds on the first day of the Penguins' development camp last summer. At 6 foot 3, he's still got a ways to go, and it'll be interesting to see what kind of work he's put in since his WHL season ended.
There's not a ton of physicality in this setting, even in the championship scrimmage, but the Prospects Challenge in September could provide a better idea of how Pickering handles the physicality against players his age, including players with AHL experience.
BRAYDEN YAGER
Yager's going to be interesting to watch for many of the same reasons as Pickering.
Yager needs to get bigger. He measured in at 5 foot 11 and 168 pounds in his first training camp last summer ... less than ideal for the pro game. While many players end up losing weight over the course of the regular season with the heavy workload of a full schedule of games and practices, Yager told me at the Memorial Cup in May that he managed to put on weight throughout the year and now weighs in at 173 pounds. What kind of work has he done in the month or so since his junior season ended? It'll be interesting to see.
Unlike Pickering, Yager isn't eligible for full-time AHL action next season. For him, it's either the NHL full-time or back to the WHL. If any one of these prospects has anything to prove in this camp, the rookie camp and Prospects Challenge in September, and then training camp, it'll be Yager.
"(Making the NHL) is definitely something I'll be looking at when shifting my focus in the summer," he told me at the Memorial Cup. "I'm going to have a big summer and get as much out of it as I can and to go to camp with a lot of confidence."
It's a long shot, given the few openings and number of younger forward prospects pushing for them. But as Dubas said, he could have a shot if he earns it.
VILLE KOIVUNEN
Two of the prospects the Penguins got back in the Jake Guentzel trade will be at this camp, and Koivunen is one of them. That alone makes him intriguing. This will be his first time in Pittsburgh since the trade.
Regardless of how they acquired him, Koivunen is one of their more exciting forward prospects. His 56 points (22 goals, 34 assists) this season in Finland were the most by a 20-year-old player in nearly 30 years in the Finnish league. From the start of December until the end of the regular season, Koivunen led the entire league in points. He blew his previous career highs of 12 goals and 18 assists away last season.
Koivunen has limited experience playing in North America on the smaller ice already. He made his AHL debut in Wilkes-Barre's short-lived playoff run, scoring a goal and an assist in two games. He didn't look out of place in that short sample size, which bodes well for next season as he looked to adjust to the North American game full-time. This camp will provide another look to see him in a similar setting.
Koivunen will most likely start the year in Wilkes-Barre. Dubas mentioned him at the end of last season as a potential for a mid-season call up for this coming season, but he hasn't mentioned Koivunen as frequently as he's mentioned more experienced forwards like Sam Poulin and Vasily Ponomarev.
CRUZ LUCIUS
Lucius is the other forward prospect from the Guentzel deal who will be in this camp. He's a little further off -- he was only a sophomore at the University of Wisconsin this past season -- but he's not that far off from being in Wilkes-Barre. It's pretty common for drafted prospects like Lucius to leave school after their junior season, so Lucius could be in the AHL as soon as the spring when his college season ends.
Lucius will be interesting to watch because like a few of these guys, it'll just be the first opportunity to do so. I'm interested in speaking with him again, too. Since I last interviewed him after the trade, Lucius has transferred to Arizona State. It'll be interesting to speak with him about his thinking there and what all went into that decision.
EMIL JARVENTIE
This will be the second development camp for the Penguins' forward prospect Jarventie after being drafted in the seventh round last year ... sort of. He didn't get to participate in the on-ice sessions in camp until the final day last year because British Airways lost his gear. He at least made the most of his limited on-ice action, scoring a goal in his team' first game:
Emil Jarventie…goal! - DP pic.twitter.com/PUEQGyQxGS
— SportsNet Pittsburgh (@SNPittsburgh) July 3, 2023
Like a lot of these guys, it'll be big to see where Jarventie is size-wise this year. He's an offensive-minded, undersized winger, listed at 5 foot 10 and 168 pounds. He'll need to get stronger, but he's also only 19. He has time.
Jarventie spent most of the year in Finland's second professional league with the club KOOVEE, and seemed to handle things well playing against grown men. He scored nine goals and 12 assists in 41 games. How will any of that translate to North America? That's what camp is for.
KALLE KANGAS
Kangas, the left-handed defenseman who the Penguins took in the seventh round in last year's draft, was another victim of British Airways last camp. He didn't get on the ice until the last day. So like Jarventie, this will be the first real chance to see him.
When the Penguins drafted Kangas, he hadn't played any level of professional hockey yet in Finland. He had only played in Jokerit's U20 junior team, scoring one goal and eight assists with a plus-15 rating in 42 games. He spent most of last season in the second professional league, recording four goals, five assists, a plus-10 rating and 67 penalty minutes in 40 games. He even made Finland's World Junior roster, playing all seven games as a bottom-pairing defenseman.
Kangas is big. He's 6 foot 4 and 205 pounds. The concern with him when he was drafted was his skating. This camp will provide the opportunity to see his skating on the smaller ice where things happen quicker.
HARRISON BRUNICKE
The Penguins' top prospect from this summer's draft class is an easy choice. This will be the right-handed defenseman's first camp with an NHL team.
Unlike a lot of these guys, Brunicke is starting from a pretty good place size-wise. He's big already at 6 foot 3 and 196 pounds. He's physical, though that might not come out so much in this setting.
It would be great to see Brunicke on a pairing with Pickering in this camp, but that might be a lot to ask for. They generally try to balance these teams, and putting two of their top prospects on one team might not happen.
TANNER HOWE
Howe is the Penguins' other top prospect from this summer's draft class, selected just two spots after Brunicke. It's his first time around the team, and so he'll be another big one to watch.
Howe is a rat-like player. He's physical, competitive, and loves getting under the skin of opponents. So like Brunicke, those elements might not exactly be on big display here. But he'll certainly be someone to watch in the Prospects Challenge in September. Guys with that skillset always end up being the main character of the week.
MAC SWANSON
Of the rest of the Penguins' 2024 draft class, Swanson is the one I'm most interested in watching in camp.
Swanson, a forward, was one of two seventh-round picks the Penguins had. He's skilled, scored 26 goals and 51 assists in 55 games, is coming off a USHL championship, and also wins for USHL Forward of the Year and the USHL Player of the Year. The knock on him is just that he's small -- 5 foot 8 and 167 pounds.
Swanson seems like a real boom-or-bust prospect, and as a seventh-round pick, he's low-risk, high-potential reward. Getting to see him against some prospects who are generally a little older, a little bigger, a little stronger will be a good experience.
