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Pittsburgh Top-10 Prospects -- 2020-21 season

10. D Anttoni Honka
Drafted: COL - 3rd round (74th overall) in 2019

Purely an offensive defenseman... a terrific skater with good offensive ability, Honka brings enough skill to the table that he could be a contributor at the next level, but he needs a ton of work on his defensive game. Honka appears a longshot to make it as an EHEC regular, but he does have some upside.

Potential: 3rd pairing defenseman / PP specialist
Likeliness to Reach: D


9. R/L Vladislav Firstov
Drafted: PIT - 2nd round (60th overall) in 2019

Firstov's game took a step forward over the summer, though he may be caught in a situation where he isn't quite skilled enough offensively to be a second-line winger and isn't quite skilled enough defensively to be a bottom-six winger. He's consistent with a good shot, but is relatively average in most other areas. The Penguins do appear to be favouring a third scoring line so if that remains the philosophy, he may have an outside shot at cracking their roster in the future.

Potential: 3rd line winger
Likeliness to Reach: C


8. L/R Carter Savoie
Drafted: PIT - 4th round (117th overall) in 2020

A real boom-or-bust pick, Savoie brings it every night but has an extremely raw skillset and there are questions about just how much he can develop it. He has played against lower level competition, and team aren't sure what to expect from him going forward. Savoie's got a very good shot and high offensive skill that gives him plenty of untapped upside. He could develop into a solid scoring forward, but he could also find himself out of the league in a few seasons.

Potential: 2nd line winger
Likeliness to Reach: D


7. D Ilya Mironov
Drafted: PIT - 4th round (110th overall) in 2020

Mironov is eerily reminiscent of off-season pickup Vitaly Anikeyenko - a big, defense-first, Russian-born defender with a nasty mean streak. Consistency may be an issue with Mironov and we shouldn't ever expect him to develop much in the way of an offensive game, but there is a coveted place in the EHEC for guys who play the way Mironov does. Expect to see him stick somewhere as a depth defender and if the Penguins are lucky, he may even develop enough to hold down a third-pairing role.

Potential: 3rd pairing defenseman
Likeliness to Reach: C


6. R/L Filip Hallander
Drafted: PIT - 2nd round (35th overall) in 2018

A quick, well-rounded two-way forward with not a lot in the way of true strengths, nor in the way of true weaknesses. Hallander will likely develop into the kind of player who can play a regular shift without being a liability on the ice; a solid, safe, third or fourth-line forward who doesn't do anything flashy but whom you know what you are going to get on any given night.

Potential: Bottom six winger
Likeliness to Reach: A


5. C/L Cameron Morrison
Drafted: NYR - 2nd round (40th overall) in 2016

Morrison is a very physical player with limited offensive skill. He became an unrestricted free agent this off-season and was signed by the Penguins. Listed as a centre/left winger, Morrison may never be a strong enough face-off man to take a regular shift in the middle, but he is likely to be a solid fourth line physical winger at worst.

Potential: Bottom six forward
Likeliness to Reach: B


4. G Samuel Hlavaj
Drafted: PIT - 3rd round (65th overall) in 2020

As a goalie prospect, Hlavaj is an average athlete with decent upside; his real value lies in his reliability. He's a guy who isn't fazed in any situation, has good size at 6'4, 207, and is pretty consistent on a game-to-game basis. He's projected as a backup with some fringe starter potential if he ends up on a team with a questionable goalie situation.

Potential: Backup goalie / Fringe starter
Likeliness to Reach: A


3. L/R Patrik Puistola
Drafted: PIT - 2nd round (46th overall) in 2019

Puistola is a one-dimensional player, to be sure, but he does that dimension well for a guy who dropped to the second round. An elite shooter with other good offensive tools, Puistola is going to need a ton of work on the defensive side of his game to end up holding down a regular EHEC job - but if he does manage to lock down a top-six role, he's the kind of player who has the ability to produce good numbers.

Potential: Middle six winger / PP specialist
Likeliness to Reach: B


2. L/R Oliver Suni
Drafted: PIT - 2nd round (52nd overall) in 2020

The Penguins were surprised to see Suni fall so far in the 2020 draft - they reportedly had a late-1st, early-2nd round grade on him - but a likely reason why is his limited offensive upside. Suni is likely to develop into a solid crash-and-bang bottom-six winger - he plays a good physical game and is reliable defensively and on the penalty kill. However, there are questions about his true offensive game and in particular his ability to use his teammates. He may be best used in a low-minute role where his job is to play a simple game, throw his weight around, and cause trouble in front of the net.

Potential: Bottom six winger
Likeliness to Reach: A


1. L/C Cole Perfetti
Drafted: PIT - 1st round (5th overall) in 2020

When the Penguins sought to trade back up into the top-7 of the 2020 draft it was for a player like this. Perfetti does it all at a truly elite level offensively. He shares a big flaw with last year's #2 pick Jack Hughes, in that neither one is very fond of the physical side of the game, but ultimately joins Hughes and Svechnikov as highly consistent, highly gifted offensive performers and the trio could one day be a truly terrifying offensive unit.

Potential: 1st line winger
Likeliness to Reach: B


Graduated/Ineligible: Vasili Podkolzin, Jack Hughes, Moritz Seider
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