• What: NHL Draft, Round 1 • When: 7 p.m. • Where: Peacock Theater, Los Angeles • TV: ESPN • Streaming: ESPN+ • Media notes: NHL.com
► FOLLOW ALONG
• That's a wrap on today. Still a ton of coverage coming tonight. Back at it at noon tomorrow.
• Last pick of the day: Flames take forward Cullen Potter.
• No. 31: Kings take defenseman Henry Brzustewicz.
• No. 30: Sharks take goaltender Joshua Ravensbergen. Second goalie this round.
• No. 29: Blackhawks take forward Mason West.
• No. 28: Jets take defenseman Sascha Boumedienne.
• No. 27: Capitals take forward Lynden Lakovic.
• No. 26: Predators take forward Ryker Lee.
• No. 25: Blackhawks take forward Vaclav Nestrasil.
• Funny. For pick No. 11, Kris and Alex Letang both came out, Kris announced it. For No. 22, they both came out, Alex announced it. For No. 24, only Alex came out and announced it. No sign of Kris.
• Three picks, three forwards. Penguins definitely bolstered their pool up front.
• No. 24: Penguins pick center William Horcoff from the University of Michigan. Shawn Horcoff's son.
• The Penguins have made another trade. Kings were on the clock at No. 24. Penguins traded No. 31 and 59 to the Kings for this pick.
• No. 23: Senators take Logan Hensler.
• Serious comment: Bill Zonnon did the most pull-ups at the combine, with 16. Penguins won the draft. IYKYK.
• Penguins are back on the clock. Still available from my profiles are forwards Lynden Lakovic and Malcom Spence.
• No. 21: Predators take defenseman Cam Reid.
• The Senators were on the clock at No. 21 but flipped the pick to Nashville for No. 23 and No. 67. Predators are on the clock now, then the Penguins again.
• No. 20: Blue Jackets take the first goalie: Pyotr Andreyanov.
• Scroll just below for more on Benjamin Kindel in a separate feed entry.
• No. 19: Blues take Justin Carbonneau.
• No. 18: Flames pick Cole Reschny.
• No. 17: And there goes Kashawn Aitcheson, also to the Islanders.
• No. 16: There goes Victor Eklund. Islanders.
• Reiterating this: Sidney Crosby has repeatedly reiterated his commitment to the Penguins. He didn't hide his irritation about the constant speculation and "reporting" that said otherwise. Georges Laraque randomly getting on Twitter and saying that Crosby is going elsewhere is a big nothing.
• No. 15: Canucks pick forward Braeden Cootes.
• No. 14: Blue Jackets take defenseman Jackson Smith. Going to Penn State.
• Catching up: Flyers took forward Jack Nesbitt at No. 12, then the Red Wings took forward Carter Bear at No. 13.
• OK, back after meeting with the newest Penguin, Benjamin Kindel. Nice kid. Obviously, more to come on that.
• Penguins trade pick No. 12 to the Flyers for Nos. 22 and 31. Buckle up, we're here all night. Penguins will have three first-round prospects by the end of the night.
• Wow. Off the board. Penguins take Calgary Hitmen center Benjamin Kindel. Most rankings had him in the 20s.
• So, Victor Eklund and one of Kashawn Aitcheson and Jackson Smith here, yeah?
• Penguins are on the clock.
• Pick No. 10: Ducks take Brandon Wheat Kings forward Roger McQueen. Kachow.
• Pick No. 7: Bruins go with Boston College forward James Hagens, as announced by Adam Sandler.
• Officially an hour in from the start time for this thing and they've made six picks. So, expect the Penguins to be on the clock in another 50 minutes.
• Pick No. 6: Flyers pick Brampton Steelheads forward Porter Martone. Penguins fans were super high on him but he wasn't someone they took out to dinner, he was never realistically in their range.
• Did Shea Weber forget he signed up to do this? Why was he FaceTiming in from a golf course?
• Pick No. 4: Mammoth select Moncton Wildcats forward Caleb Desnoyers. He's one of the more fun personalities I remember from the combine.
• Pick No. 3: Blackhawks take Swedish forward Anton Frondell. Still no real surprises here. Midseason he seemed like a possible mid-round pick and the Penguins were interested in him but he shot up the rankings late.
• Is Mike Grier talking to a security camera in the Sharks' video room? What is this whole thing?
• Pick No. 2: Sharks take Saginaw Spirit forward Michael Misa. Also no real surprise here.
• This whole setup where they make the kid stand at a screen and talk to his new GM on the air is awkward. Go back the old format.
• Pick No. 1: Islanders select Erie Otters defenseman Matthew Schaefer. No surprise.
• Gary Bettman's trying make this out to be not decentralized because all the teams are there virtually ... so not centralized in one place.
• Announcing pick No. 11 tonight for the Penguins .. Kris and Alex Letang:
• If you're not following any national media people on Twitter: Don't be surprised if the Penguins do something. But also don't be surprised if they don't. They could trade up, or they could trade down, or they could do neither of those things, or both of those things.
• Hello from the Penguins' draft headquarters downtown:
TAYLOR HAASE / DKPS
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THE ASYLUM
Taylor Haase
3:00 am - 06.27.2025DowntownFinal: NHL Draft, Day 1
• What: NHL Draft, Round 1
• When: 7 p.m.
• Where: Peacock Theater, Los Angeles
• TV: ESPN
• Streaming: ESPN+
• Media notes: NHL.com
► FOLLOW ALONG
• That's a wrap on today. Still a ton of coverage coming tonight. Back at it at noon tomorrow.
• Last pick of the day: Flames take forward Cullen Potter.
• No. 31: Kings take defenseman Henry Brzustewicz.
• No. 30: Sharks take goaltender Joshua Ravensbergen. Second goalie this round.
• No. 29: Blackhawks take forward Mason West.
• No. 28: Jets take defenseman Sascha Boumedienne.
• No. 27: Capitals take forward Lynden Lakovic.
• No. 26: Predators take forward Ryker Lee.
• No. 25: Blackhawks take forward Vaclav Nestrasil.
• Funny. For pick No. 11, Kris and Alex Letang both came out, Kris announced it. For No. 22, they both came out, Alex announced it. For No. 24, only Alex came out and announced it. No sign of Kris.
• Three picks, three forwards. Penguins definitely bolstered their pool up front.
• No. 24: Penguins pick center William Horcoff from the University of Michigan. Shawn Horcoff's son.
• The Penguins have made another trade. Kings were on the clock at No. 24. Penguins traded No. 31 and 59 to the Kings for this pick.
• No. 23: Senators take Logan Hensler.
• Serious comment: Bill Zonnon did the most pull-ups at the combine, with 16. Penguins won the draft. IYKYK.
• Penguins draft QMJHL winger Bill Zonnon. He's 6-2, 190 pounds.
• Penguins are back on the clock. Still available from my profiles are forwards Lynden Lakovic and Malcom Spence.
• No. 21: Predators take defenseman Cam Reid.
• The Senators were on the clock at No. 21 but flipped the pick to Nashville for No. 23 and No. 67. Predators are on the clock now, then the Penguins again.
• No. 20: Blue Jackets take the first goalie: Pyotr Andreyanov.
• Scroll just below for more on Benjamin Kindel in a separate feed entry.
• No. 19: Blues take Justin Carbonneau.
• No. 18: Flames pick Cole Reschny.
• No. 17: And there goes Kashawn Aitcheson, also to the Islanders.
• No. 16: There goes Victor Eklund. Islanders.
• Reiterating this: Sidney Crosby has repeatedly reiterated his commitment to the Penguins. He didn't hide his irritation about the constant speculation and "reporting" that said otherwise. Georges Laraque randomly getting on Twitter and saying that Crosby is going elsewhere is a big nothing.
• No. 15: Canucks pick forward Braeden Cootes.
• No. 14: Blue Jackets take defenseman Jackson Smith. Going to Penn State.
• Catching up: Flyers took forward Jack Nesbitt at No. 12, then the Red Wings took forward Carter Bear at No. 13.
• OK, back after meeting with the newest Penguin, Benjamin Kindel. Nice kid. Obviously, more to come on that.
• Penguins trade pick No. 12 to the Flyers for Nos. 22 and 31. Buckle up, we're here all night. Penguins will have three first-round prospects by the end of the night.
• Wow. Off the board. Penguins take Calgary Hitmen center Benjamin Kindel. Most rankings had him in the 20s.
• So, Victor Eklund and one of Kashawn Aitcheson and Jackson Smith here, yeah?
• Penguins are on the clock.
• Pick No. 10: Ducks take Brandon Wheat Kings forward Roger McQueen. Kachow.
• Pick No. 9: Sabres take Seattle Thunderbirds defenseman Radim Mrtka.
• Pick No. 8: Kraken pick Brantford Bulldogs forward Jake O'Brien.
• Pick No. 7: Bruins go with Boston College forward James Hagens, as announced by Adam Sandler.
• Officially an hour in from the start time for this thing and they've made six picks. So, expect the Penguins to be on the clock in another 50 minutes.
• Pick No. 6: Flyers pick Brampton Steelheads forward Porter Martone. Penguins fans were super high on him but he wasn't someone they took out to dinner, he was never realistically in their range.
• Did Shea Weber forget he signed up to do this? Why was he FaceTiming in from a golf course?
• Pick No. 5: Predators pick Soo Greyhounds forward Brady Martin.
• Pick No. 4: Mammoth select Moncton Wildcats forward Caleb Desnoyers. He's one of the more fun personalities I remember from the combine.
• Pick No. 3: Blackhawks take Swedish forward Anton Frondell. Still no real surprises here. Midseason he seemed like a possible mid-round pick and the Penguins were interested in him but he shot up the rankings late.
• Is Mike Grier talking to a security camera in the Sharks' video room? What is this whole thing?
• Pick No. 2: Sharks take Saginaw Spirit forward Michael Misa. Also no real surprise here.
• This whole setup where they make the kid stand at a screen and talk to his new GM on the air is awkward. Go back the old format.
• Pick No. 1: Islanders select Erie Otters defenseman Matthew Schaefer. No surprise.
• Gary Bettman's trying make this out to be not decentralized because all the teams are there virtually ... so not centralized in one place.
• Announcing pick No. 11 tonight for the Penguins .. Kris and Alex Letang:
• If you're not following any national media people on Twitter: Don't be surprised if the Penguins do something. But also don't be surprised if they don't. They could trade up, or they could trade down, or they could do neither of those things, or both of those things.
• Hello from the Penguins' draft headquarters downtown:
TAYLOR HAASE / DKPS
Want to participate in our comments?
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Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits! Make your voice heard on the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates, and hear right back from tens of thousands of fellow Pittsburgh sports fans worldwide! Plus, access all our premium content, including Dejan Kovacevic columns, Friday Insider, daily Live Qs with the staff, more! And yeah, that's right, no ads at all!
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