The Penguins have a first-round pick in this summer's draft for the first time since 2019.
Like 2019, the Penguins have the 21st overall pick with their first selection of the draft, which is being held on July 7 and 8 in Montreal this year.
This will be the fifth time in the Penguins' history that they have had the 21st pick. What kind of player did the Penguins get at No. 21 overall in the past? Let's take a look.
1. DAVE SIMPSON, 1968
Defenseman Dave Simpson was the Penguins' third-round pick in 1968.
Simpson split the 1968-69 season between juniors and the Penguins' Central Hockey League affiliate Amarillo Wranglers. He was the Wranglers' leader in penalty minutes with 185 minutes in 58 games, and recorded six goals and 11 assists. Simpson spent the 1969-70 season with three different IHL teams, a league in which the Penguins did not have an affiliate. He played three games that year with the Baltimore Clippers, the Penguins' AHL affiliate.
Simpson returned to Amarillo in the CHL for the 1970-71 season, where he recorded three goals, 10 assists, and 74 penalty minutes in 49 games. It was his last season in the Penguins organization and he never played in the NHL.
Simpson retired from professional hockey after the 1977-78 season, during which he was also head coach of Mount Royal College. Now 74 years old, he was most recently owner of the Thunder Bay Fighting Walleye of the Thunder Bay Junior B Hockey League from 2009-16.
2. JOHN STEWART, 1970
The Penguins selected left winger John Stewart in the second round in 1970.
Stewart played 57 games in Amarillo in his rookie year, scoring 19 goals and 15 assists. He was recalled to Pittsburgh for 15 games, scoring two goals and one assist. He split the 1971-72 season between Pittsburgh and the Penguins' AHL affiliate Hershey Bears. He scored two goals and eight assists in 25 NHL games, and 10 goals and 17 assists in 46 AHL games.
The Penguins lost Stewart to the Atlanta Flames in the expansion draft in 1972. Stewart also went on to play for the California Golden Seals, as well as various WHA and AHL teams. He retired in 1978.
Stewart, now 71, became an ordained minister following his retirement from professional hockey, and has written 28 bible study guides. He lives in Minnesota.
3. COLBY ARMSTRONG, 2001
The Penguins took forward Colby Armstrong in the first round of the 2001 draft.
Armstrong made his professional debut in 2002 with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and scored 46 goals and 83 assists in 251 games over four seasons in Wilkes-Barre.
Armstrong made his NHL debut in the 2005-06 season. He spent three seasons in Pittsburgh, scoring 37 goals and 61 assists in 181 games. He scored the first Winter Classic goal in NHL history, 21 seconds into the inaugural game in 2008.
The Penguins traded Armstrong, Angelo Esposito, Erik Christensen and a first-round draft pick at the 2008 trade deadline to the Atlanta Thrashers in exchange for Marian Hossa and Pascal Dupuis.
Armstrong played for the Thrashers, Maple Leafs, Canadiens and Swedish club Vaxjo Lakers before retiring from professional hockey in 2014.
Armstrong, 39, now works as an analyst for Penguins games on AT&T SportsNet.
4. SAM POULIN, 2019
The Penguins took forward Sam Poulin in the first round of the 2019 draft.
Poulin made his professional debut with Wilkes-Barre this past season, and his adjustment to the professional game didn't go smoothly in the beginning, to say the least.
Poulin was making mistakes. Poulin committed an egregious turnover in his own end that quickly led to a Utica goal in one game in January, and it proved costly, with Wilkes-Barre losing the game by one goal. Poulin watched the next game from the press box, with coach J.D. Forrest later telling me that the decision was a result of "repetitive" mistakes.
Poulin went on to completely turn his season around, and his rookie season as a whole can be viewed as a success. He was shifted from wing to center in an effort to get him more puck touches and speed up the learning process when it came to his decision-making, but he performed so well at center that he remained there for the rest of the season, and finished the year with 16 goals and 21 assists in 72 games.
Of the 2019 draft class, Poulin is currently the highest-drafted player who has yet to make his NHL debut. It wouldn't be surprising to see him get that opportunity as a midseason call up next year.
The Penguins have four other selections in the 2022 draft. Who have they taken when they've drafted in those positions in the past?
1. Fourth round, 118th overall
2007: Alex Grant, defenseman - Played four seasons between Wheeling and Wilkes-Barre. Made his NHL debut with the Ducks in 2013-14, has played in seven NHL games over his 13-year career. Has spent the last four years with Jokerit in the KHL.
2. Fifth round, 150th overall
1973: Randy Aimoe, defenseman - Played parts of two seasons in the IHL after being drafted then retired.
1974: Jim Chicoyne, defenseman - Played one season in Sweden and two seasons in the minors then retired.
1996: Peter Bergman, forward - Was never signed by the Penguins, retired after junior career ended.
2008: Alexander Pechursky, goaltender - Played two seasons in North America, dressed as backup to John Curry in a game in 2010 after both Marc-Andre Fleury and Brent Johnson were injured. Entered game against the Canucks in relief after Curry was pulled in the second period, stopped 12 of 13 shots. Last played in 2020 in Russia.
3. Sixth round, 182nd overall
1993: Sean Selmser, forward - Played one game in NHL for Columbus in 2000-01.
4. Seventh round, 214th overall
1986: Stan Drulia, forward - Played 126 games in NHL with Tampa. Biggest contribution to Penguins organization came by serving as head coach of Nailers from 2010-11.
1988: Cory Laylin, defenseman - Never signed with Penguins after college career. Never played in NHL, spent 16 years playing for various teams across Europe.
1991: Chris Tok, defenseman - Never signed with Penguins or played in NHL, played five seasons in minors and one in Europe before retiring.
