Two Players Penguins Could Select With 11th Pick In 2025 Draft

Kyle Dubas has his work cut out for him as he navigates the Pittsburgh Penguins into a new era — beginning with the 2025 NHL Entry Draft next month.

The Penguins have 11 picks this year, which could reduce to 10 if the conditional first-round pick from the New York Rangers defers to 2026. There will be plenty of opportunities for the Penguins to add impact players. Of the 11 picks, the club has the 11th overall pick after dropping two spots in the draft lottery.

The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler projects the Penguins to select forward Victor Eklund in his first mock draft posted last week.

“Ideally, I think the Penguins would hope for one of the top centers to fall,” Wheeler wrote. “If that doesn’t happen, though, I don’t think their pool — as improved as it is — can afford to reach for a center. The consensus top center left is Braeden Cootes, but he’s a lower-upside bet and Eklund, a skilled but competitive and smart right-shot winger, is the Kyle Dubas/Wes Clark type. I could see them looking to add some size, though, as well, and think a player like Lynden Lakovic could fit and go as early as this pick as well.”

Although Wheeler anticipates Dubas trying to add a prospect upfront, Tankathon has Pittsburgh taking defenseman Radim Mrtka with its only first-round pick.

Mrtka is a towering 6-foot-6 defenseman who demonstrates more skill on the ice than his point total might imply. What sets Mrtka apart from many of his peers is not his strength but rather his mobility and dexterity. He uses his edges to create space and skillfully shifts his weight to fend off pressure. Mrtka possesses a range of tools in his skill set that are typically uncommon among players of his size.

Wheeler has Mrtka going 10th to the Anaheim Ducks, but if he is still on the board for the Penguins, Dubas could make the selection, knowing he needs to rebuild the blue line with only Erik Karlsson, Kris Letang and Ryan Graves locked up long term.

It’s worth noting the Penguins selected defenseman Owen Pickering in the 2022 draft — the last time Pittsburgh had a first-round pick.

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