At No. 11, the Penguins might just land the steal of the NHL Draft

The Pittsburgh Penguins enter the annual ritual that is the NHL Draft with the 11th overall pick. To some, holding a pick outside the top 10 is disappointing since the likelihood of landing a superstar player can be quite slim.

But that doesn’t mean the Penguins can’t strike gold with that 11th-overall pick. But before we get into the reasons why that’s possible, let’s take a trip down memory.

Here’s a look at the list of 11th overall picks going back to 1992, as listed by The Draft Analyst:

Don’t worry if the bulk of these names don’t ring a bell. Many of the names on this list did not make it to the NHL or had very limited impact.

But if you look closely, there are some names that immediately jump off the screen.

The first name that struck me was Jarome Iginla. He went to the Calgary Flames in 1995 and had a long, successful career that has landed him in the Hall of Fame.

Two other interesting names are Jeff Carter (2003) and Anze Kopitar (2005) both of whom played on the LA Kings Stanley Cup championship teams in 2012 and 2014.

Another highly interesting name is Filip Forsberg. Forsberg landed in Nashville after one of the most lopsided deals in recent memory.

Other notable names selected 11th overall in recent memory are Gabriel  Vilardi, Lawson Crouse, and Conor Geekie.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. Yes, there are some significant names on the list. But what about all those busts? How can the Penguins be sure they strike gold and not a bust?

That’s the flip side of this discussion.

How Pittsburgh Penguins can strike gold with 11th pick in 2025 NHL Draft

Back in the day, in the 90s, most teams relied on reports from NHL Central Scouting. Having own scouting teams was a relative rarity in those days. As a result, plenty of picks were hits and misses. It was actually much more common for teams to hit gold in the later rounds as some players simply slipped through the cracks.

As teams built and developed more robust scouting departments, hits, and misses became less frequent in the first round. There are players who never pan out, of course. But the so-called draft busts have been less frequent than in the past.

Analytics have also played a huge role in helping teams better assess players. While there are no sure bets, the fact remains that as scouting, metrics, and analytics continue to evolve, measuring a player’s potential impact becomes much more precise.

Given that Penguins GM Kyle Dubas is a notable analytics master, there’s reason to believe Dubas and his team will uncover a hidden gem at #11.

So, fans shouldn’t be surprised to find Dubas go against the grain somewhat and pick a player that fits the mold of what the Pittsburgh Penguins are looking for to retool their lineup.

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