The Penguins will have two first-round picks in this year’s draft.
The Rangers notified the NHL that they will transfer the 12th overall pick this summer to the Penguins. The pick was originally sent to the Canucks in the J.T. Miller trade, then to the Penguins in the Marcus Pettersson/Drew O’Connor trade. The original trade between the Rangers and Canucks had the pick top-16 protected, meaning if it was within the top 16 picks, the Rangers had the option to send the first-round pick either this summer or next summer. They chose the former.
When I spoke with Kyle Dubas while in Buffalo earlier this month, he told me that they didn’t have any sense at all yet on which direction the Rangers would take with the pick, but they didn’t mind either way.
"From our perspective, it really doesn't make any difference,” Dubas told me. “We're picking No. 11, so if we have No. 11 and No. 12, the preparation isn't any different at all. I think more than that, the way that we project it out at this current stage, if the Rangers play to expectation next year and they're picking in the late 20s, we kind of see the 12th pick this year and that later pick next year probably being about equal in value, perhaps, just because of the projected strength of the different classes. So, whatever the Rangers would like to do is fine by us. It's no sweat either way, and once they decide, everyone will know.”
The decision gives the Penguins back-to-back first-round picks on Friday, No. 11 and 12, though the need for high-end prospects could see them ultimately trade to move up in the order.
THE ASYLUM
Rangers transfer this year’s pick
The Penguins will have two first-round picks in this year’s draft.
The Rangers notified the NHL that they will transfer the 12th overall pick this summer to the Penguins. The pick was originally sent to the Canucks in the J.T. Miller trade, then to the Penguins in the Marcus Pettersson/Drew O’Connor trade. The original trade between the Rangers and Canucks had the pick top-16 protected, meaning if it was within the top 16 picks, the Rangers had the option to send the first-round pick either this summer or next summer. They chose the former.
When I spoke with Kyle Dubas while in Buffalo earlier this month, he told me that they didn’t have any sense at all yet on which direction the Rangers would take with the pick, but they didn’t mind either way.
"From our perspective, it really doesn't make any difference,” Dubas told me. “We're picking No. 11, so if we have No. 11 and No. 12, the preparation isn't any different at all. I think more than that, the way that we project it out at this current stage, if the Rangers play to expectation next year and they're picking in the late 20s, we kind of see the 12th pick this year and that later pick next year probably being about equal in value, perhaps, just because of the projected strength of the different classes. So, whatever the Rangers would like to do is fine by us. It's no sweat either way, and once they decide, everyone will know.”
The decision gives the Penguins back-to-back first-round picks on Friday, No. 11 and 12, though the need for high-end prospects could see them ultimately trade to move up in the order.
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