After another disappointing Penguins campaign that saw Pittsburgh miss the playoffs for the third consecutive season, the offseason is even more critical if Kyle Dubas plans to get the franchise back to contention.
Pittsburgh finished with 80 points in the 2024-25 season, which means it has a 5% chance of winning the draft lottery. The lottery will set the order for the first 16 picks. There will be two drawings, one to determine the No. 1 pick and a second to determine the No. 2 selection. No team can move up 10 spots, and only the top 11 teams are eligible for the No. 1 pick.
Based on the final NHL regular-season standings and the draft lottery odds determined by the Board of Governors, each team receives an allotment of randomly assigned four-number combinations. Essentially, the lower a team finishes, the more lottery tickets they receive. The San Jose Sharks, who finished 32nd in the NHL standings, received 185.
Even if the Penguins don’t land the first overall pick in the lottery, the team has two first-round selections, their own and an additional pick from the New York Rangers, and is top-13 protected. Pittsburgh has 11 total selections in the 2025 draft, with at least one pick in each of the seven rounds.
The event will be held on Monday at NHL Network studios in Secaucus, NJ. Erie Otters (OHL) defenseman Matthew Schaefer is the favorite to be selected first overall, followed by Saginaw Spirit (OHL) center Michael Misa.
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The 2025 NHL Entry Draft will be held over two days, starting with the first round on June 27 and concluding with the rest of the draft on June 28.
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