Key Dates for the Pittsburgh Penguins Offseason

Here's a look at what's on the calendar for the Pittsburgh Penguins this summer.

May 8: 2023 NHL Draft Lottery

The Penguins are part of this event - scheduled for Monday at 8 PM on ESPN - which will determine the order of selection for the first 16 picks of the 2023 NHL Draft.

The draft lottery participants are ranked from fewest regular-season points to most. Pittsburgh had the third-best record amongst those teams, which puts them at 14. Recent rule changes put a limit on the total number of selections (10) a team can move up in the event it wins one of the two lottery draws, which means only the top 11 seeds are eligible to receive the first overall selection in the 2023 NHL Draft.

So, unlike three years ago, the Penguins do not have a shot at landing the top overall pick, which will likely be Connor Bedard. What the Penguins do have is a 1.5% chance of getting the fourth overall selection with the first lottery draw.

But if they don't win, and one of the top 11 seeds wins the first lottery draw, they will get the first overall pick. If it's not the Anaheim Ducks, who have the best odds at 18.5%, everyone else will move down a slot for the second lottery draw. The Penguins would then have a slim chance of moving to No. 5, depending on what happens. After the two draws are complete, all remaining draft picks will be assigned to the remaining teams in inverse order of regular season finish.

It's all a bit complicated, but to summarize: the Penguins do not have a chance of landing the first overall pick; the highest they could go is fourth or fifth, but they'll likely select 14; and regardless of where they end up, this will be Pittsburgh's highest first-round pick since they had the eighth overall selection back in 2012, and drafted Derrick Pouliot.

May 12-28: IIHF World Championship

The Penguins haven't had a lot of representation at this event over the years, as the timing coincides with the Stanley Cup Playoffs - but there will be more players going to Tampere, Finland and Riga, Latvia this spring.

Nick Bonino, Drew O'Connor and Casey DeSmith are on Team USA's roster (full details here). P.O Joseph is representing Canada for the first time on an international level (full details here). And Alex Nylander - who signed a one-year contract to remain with the Penguins on April 29 - is playing for Sweden. 

Other countries should be announcing their rosters in the coming days.

June 4-10: NHL Scouting Combine

This event showcases the top draft-eligible prospects from North America and Europe. Staff members from each NHL team will travel to Buffalo - which has been the host city since 2015 - for a few days of interviews, medical assessments and physical fitness tests.

The interviews take place in the first part of the week, and they give the scouting staff an opportunity to put faces with names and dig a little deeper into players' personalities.

"You can't really get to know a player in 20 minutes, but you put together the 1-on-1 interview with each regional scout during the year and this interview in more of a group setting, and try to get the best feel for the kid you possibly can," Penguins director of amateur scouting Nick Pryor said at last year's combine.

The combine ends with a battery of about seven fitness tests that generate an overall profile for the athlete. Penguins strength and conditioning coach Alex Trinca explained that it helps the Penguins determine if these prospects have the raw materials or capabilities that can be developed over time by training and performing to ideally get to the NHL level.

June 26: NHL Awards

The NHL Awards kick off a busy week in Nashville for the league, as this is the first year that the ceremony and the draft will be hosted at the same location: Bridgestone Arena. Typically, the awards are held in Vegas, while the host city for the draft changes each year.

Kris Letang is Pittsburgh's nominee for the Masterton Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey. The three finalists will be announced on Tuesday, May 9.

after suffering a stroke, the second of his lifetime, and dealing with the passing of his father … all in the span of a couple months.

June 28-29: NHL Draft

As of now, the Penguins have six total selections in the 2023 NHL Draft.

Round 1 is set to begin at 7 PM on Wednesday, June 28, where the Penguins will likely be going 14 (as outlined above in the Draft Lottery section).

Rounds 2-7 are scheduled for Thursday, June 28, starting at 11 AM. The Penguins have a third-round pick (94 overall); a fifth-round pick (142 overall); a sixth-round pick (174 overall); and two seventh-round picks (209 and 221 overall).

July 1: Free agency begins

For the first time since 2019, free agency will open at 12 PM on its usual date, July 1. 

There are a few notable names set to become unrestricted free agents, including Tristan Jarry, Jason Zucker and Brian Dumoulin. I went into detail about their situations here.

The other players on that list include forwards Nick Bonino, Danton Heinen and Josh Archibald, and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov.

Ryan Poehling and Drew O'Connor are restricted free agents, which means their initial entry-level contracts have run out, but they have yet to accrue seven seasons or are younger than 27 years old. The Penguins will have a deadline to extend them Qualifying Offers.