{"id":34040,"date":"2018-08-10T08:00:34","date_gmt":"2018-08-10T12:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=34040"},"modified":"2018-08-09T13:14:46","modified_gmt":"2018-08-09T17:14:46","slug":"pittsburgh-penguins-prospects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2018\/08\/10\/pittsburgh-penguins-prospects\/","title":{"rendered":"TSP: Top Pittsburgh Penguins Prospects"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to the 2018 Top Shelf Prospects series.\u00a0 As we go through the Summer of 2018 LWOH will be featuring a team-by-team look at the top prospects in the NHL. We will be following the order of the first round of the NHL draft (as if there were no traded draft picks) and\u00a0you can find all the articles here<\/a>.\u00a0 Since we had an\u00a0extensive NHL Draft preview<\/a>, we will not be reviewing the players who were drafted in the 2018 draft, as there have been no games since then, and our reports on them will not have changed.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"What we will be doing is linking you to those articles, as well as taking a look at prospects that were acquired before this year\u2019s draft; their progress, and their chances of making the 2018-19 roster of the NHL team in question. We will also bring you one sleeper pick \u2013 a player who was either drafted in the 4th-round or later, or was an undrafted free agent signing who we pick as our dark horse to make the NHL. For those wondering, the cut-off for what is or isn\u2019t a prospect is typically about 50 NHL games played (including playoff games) or is 25 years old. These are not hard or fast rules though, and we may make some exceptions depending on the circumstances.<\/em><\/p>\n

Pittsburgh Penguins Prospects<\/h1>\n

The Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a>\u00a0entered the 2017-18 season as two-time defending Stanley Cup Champions. The three-peat was not to be, as the team fell in the second round of the Playoffs to the eventual Cup Champions, the Washington Capitals<\/a>. Meanwhile, the team watched as their former goaltender, Marc-Andre Fleury<\/a><\/strong>, went to the Stanley Cup Final with the expansion Vegas Golden Knights<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The off-season brought some changes as the Penguins wrestle with the NHL salary cap. The team added defenceman Jack Johnson<\/a><\/strong> to strengthen on the backend, but Conor Sheary<\/a><\/strong> was traded to the Buffalo Sabres<\/a> in order to make cap room. Derek Grant<\/a><\/strong> and Matt Cullen<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>were low-cost additions down the middle, while Jimmy Hayes<\/a><\/strong> was added to the wing. The Penguins also used a number of young players over the course of the year, but none reached the 50 games played mark to be considered graduated. As a result, some familiar names fill this list.<\/p>\n

2018 NHL Draft\u00a0Picks:\u00a0Calen Addison<\/strong><\/a>,\u00a0Filip Hallander<\/strong><\/a>,\u00a0Justin Almeida<\/strong>,\u00a0Liam Gorman
\n<\/strong>Graduations: Casey DeSmith<\/a><\/strong> (age)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Top Prospect: Daniel Sprong<\/a><\/h2>\n

Right Wing — shoots Right
\nBorn March\u00a017th, 1997 —\u00a0Amsterdam, Netherlands
\nHeight 6’0″ — Weight 180 lbs [183 cm \/ 82 kg]
\nDrafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2nd round, #46\u00a0overall, at the 2015 NHL Draft<\/p>\n