The Pittsburgh Penguins‘ countdown is down to hours.
The 2026 NHL Draft begins Friday evening at 7 p.m. with Round One. Rounds Two through Seven are all day Saturday.
Regarding the Penguins, the clock is ticking. As picks come off the board, their opportunity to make trades or move up in the draft dwindle. Despite a week of wild moves and dramatic NHL trade rumors, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ lone hockey move was to acquire an underused Hendrix Lapierre for a couple of future mid-round picks.
Currently, the Penguins have the 22nd overall pick, but also multiple second-rounders and third-rounders. However, numerous reports posited that Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas has been attempting to move up in the draft.
And for just the second time since 2013-14, the Penguins will have a first-round pick in consecutive years. Last year, Dubas held the 11th and 12th overall pick (from the New York Rangers via the Vancouver Canucks), but turned the 12th overall pick into picks 22 and 31, before combining a second-round pick and the 31st overall to leap ahead to No. 24.
The Penguins selected Ben Kindel at No. 11, Bill Zonnon at No. 22, and Will Horcoff at 24.
This season, the Penguins’ draft is front-loaded, without middle-round selections.
Penguins Draft Picks
Round 1, Pick 22
Round 2, Pick 39 (Acquired from Winnipeg)
Round 2, Pick 54
Round 3, Pick 86
Round 6, Pick 170 (Acquired from Nashville)
How to Watch
Round 1
Friday, June 26, 7:00 p.m.
US: ESPN
CA: Sportsnet, TVA
Rounds 2-7
Saturday, June 27, 11:00 a.m.
US: NHL Network, ESPN+
CA: Sportsnet
Mock Drafts
Elite Prospects Consensus Ranking
Alexander Command, center, Orebro HK U20 (Sweden).
Mathis Preston, center, Spokane (WHL).
Sportsnet Mock Draft (Sam Cosentino)
Xavier Villeneuve, LHD, Blainville-Boisbriand Armada (QMJHL).
JP Hurlbert, LW, Kamloops (WHL).
PHN Projection: In the unlikely event he is available, the Penguins should leap at the chance to select Wyatt Cullen, of the USNTD. However, more realistically, big center Maddox Dagenais or smaller RHD Tommy Bleyl fit the Penguins’ DNA.
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