Elite Prospects 2025 NHL Prospect Pool Rankings: No. 18-ranked Pittsburgh Penguins

With Sidney Crosby and Yevgeni Malkin refusing to follow conventional aging curves, the Pittsburgh Penguins are stuck: Not good enough to make the playoffs, but not bad enough to completely bottom out – at least not yet. 

In the early stages of this in-between phase, the Penguins crafted cleverly, adding risers, projectability, and some re-entries to the system. This past year, they took a volume approach. In total, they made 13 picks last June, including three in the first round. They took shutdown defencemen, high-IQ forwards, industrious checkers with size, and potential breakout candidates. 

Now, they have a prospect pool on the rise, elevating the third-most spots since last year's exercise (10). And more importantly, they have a prospect pool that could improve the roster this season. 

Still, the biggest question in the system from last year – impact players – remains, but the first two players on our list could be.