The Penguins’ prospects nudged aside the Bruins’ hopefuls by a 2-1 count yesterday afternoon in a Prospects Challenge matchup at LECOM Harborcenter in Buffalo.
Ville Koivunen struck for the game-opening tally off a nifty feed from Tristan Broz, who initiated the scoring sequence with a superb play in the defensive zone. Avery Hayes capped the proceedings with a breakaway goal with 26 seconds remaining.
At the far end of the rink, Sergei Murashov blunted all 11 shots he faced before ceding the net to Gabriel D’Aigle at the midpoint. Defenseman Harrison Brunicke continued to impress with his ultra-fluid skating while serving as a one-man transition gang.
In the extracurriculars department, kudos to recent draftee Quinn Beauchesne for coming to the aid of Benjamin Kindel after our top-pick was rammed into the sideboards by Jackson Edward. Quinn delivered a beat down, a most welcome change from our usual passivity.
I was particularly encouraged by glowing reports regarding former first-round selection Owen Pickering. One observer (Pensburgh commenter 4All the Marks) who lives in Tampa Bay went so far as to liken Pickering’s d-zone play to that of perennial Norris Trophy candidate Victor Hedman, citing his “smart play, sound positioning and crisp, safe first passes.” To say nothing of a brilliant stretch pass that nearly led to a goal.
No faint praise.
To digress, Pickering’s been a bit of an enigma since being taken 21st overall in the 2022 Entry Draft as a stretch pick by then-GM Ron Hextall. Possessing a lanky but projectable frame and decent instincts for jumping into the play, he was initially regarded as an offense-first defender, as evidenced by his EliteProspects bio.
The core of Pickering’s game is what he does with the puck. On retrievals, he deceives, cuts back, then sprints to the inside. With head fakes and changes of pace, he misdirects forecheckers and then hits a teammate up the ice. When he’s not leading the rush, he’s joining it. And that activation interacts with his projectable shot and exciting playmaking flashes.
Good intangibles, too, including an outgoing nature and leadership potential.
However, during the next two seasons in junior his boxcars flat-lined. Nothing bad, mind you…consecutive seasons of 45 and 46 points. But nothing eye-popping, especially for a kid initially touted as an offensive threat.
The trend continued during Owen’s rookie pro season in 2024-25. His output was exceedingly modest, only two goals and 13 points in 47 games with the Baby Pens. However, bolstered by a growth spurt (he’s now a rangy 6’5” and 200 pounds) his defensive work was surprisingly strong, as evidenced by a team-best plus-18.
When called up by the Pens in mid-November, Pickering did a creditable job over a 25-game run, even spending time on the top pairing with mercurial Kris Letang, not the easiest assignment for a rookie. When Pickering’s play began to slip in January, he was returned to the Baby Pens. Owen promptly received an invite to participate in the AHL All-Star game as a replacement player.
With the Pens in desperate need of defensive help, especially on the woefully thin portside, Pickering’s progress couldn’t be more timely. Let’s hope he’s able to seize the opportunity that will surely be placed in front of him.
If so, he just may emerge as the “Pick” of the litter after all.
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For more details on yesterday’s action, be sure to check out the excellent accounts on Pittsburgh Hockey Now and Pensburgh.
MyNHLDraft did have the Penguins drafting Pickering (and Yager) but Pickering was rated as a 2nd or 3rd round pick until about 2 months or so before the draft, after someone put out a highlight reel of Pickering sending the same stretch pass from multiple, multiple angles and a Coach of his from a tournament, after coaching him for three days went around telling everyone how great he was.
Up until that point, scouts who actually watched him play talked about how slow he was in his turns, going through very wide arcs and how he slowed down and glided into the attacking zone when he carried the puck up, resulting in opponents taking the puck off his stick and going the other way. Moreover, if anyone would have taken the time to actually watch game films of Pickering and not just highlight reels, they would have seen these scouts were right. They would of also seen how Pickering was very slow to get back to his point after jumping up into the offensive zone. He would lolly gag at the front of the opposing net after the play had dissolved and was already going back the other way in an odd man break, thanks to Pickering’s lack of defensive awareness or perhaps laziness. Another thing anyone watching the kid play would have seen was that Pickering chased the puck around his defensive zone like a 6-year old, with no concept of positioning and that as big as he is, he was very weak on the puck, losing almost every puck battle I watched.
These short comings no doubt played a serious roll in Pickering not getting a call up until he aged out of the Juniors and the fact that he was never listed in the top 100 prospects across the NHL, while he was still in the Juniors and why Defensemen younger than him did make the top 100. The short comings also explain why Pickering has only played 25 NHL games and why defenseman Vitorrio Mancini, draft 159th (5th Round) in the draft by the Rangers has already played 31 games, defenseman Isaiah George of the Islanders who was drafted 99th (4th round) has already played 33 games, defenseman Elias Petterson of the Vancouver Canucks who was drafted 80th (3rd round) has alreadyb played 28 NHL games, defenseman Lane Hudson of the Montreal Canadiens who was drafted 62nd (2nd round) has already played 84 NHL games..
And Pickering’s physical weakness had him get injured in the preseason workout that the team put their players through at the Fire Academy.
Fortunately, Pickering is developing. Pickering used the extra time in the Juniors to his advantage. He now is playing fairly well defensively and appears to have gotten himself together physically. His still looks a little awkward on his skates, almost as if he were a Vulture trying to skate, but he is growing into a decent defenseman, not a really the type of defenseman drafted in the first round, but the kind of defenseman you pick up in the 2nd or 3rd round like he was originally rated.
I am pulling for the kid; if he succeeds, the team succeeds, and he appears to be a decent kid. And You are right as the draft approached, a bunch of lazy scouts, not willing to actually watch game film, or perhaps scouts who knew that the Penguins would be foolish, had our Penguins drafting Pickering. However, the original scouting reports were the far more accurate reports.
Pickering was not a reach. He was drafted just about exactly where he was expected to go in virtually every ranking..
Hey Outsider.
I stand corrected. I was thinking more of his pre-draft status which Other Rick referred to in his comments.
Rick