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Recap: A Typical Draft For Shero And The Pens

This was Ray Shero's fifth draft as a general manager, and it was true to form. Shero has only selected three players who play in Europe with all his picks, and the North American trend continued this year as well. He continued to draft forwards early and defensemen late and hasn't put much emphasis on drafting goaltenders. The Pens loaded up on players from the Ontario Hockey League and U.S. colleges, which has also been their M.O.

Now let's look at who they drafted after first rounder Beau Bennett:

Bryan Rust (right wing) - Third round - 80th overall

"Bryan Rust is the more complete package [than Bennett], the playoff type of performer that's going to be out there on the penalty kill and blocking shots but also chipping in with goals.  His attention to detail is good." - Pens amateur scouting director Jay Heinbuck

Rust, at 5-foot-10 and 194 pounds, was one of the smallest players drafted in the entire weekend. He's a product of the U.S. Development Program that has produced so many good players over recent years. Rust will play at the University of Notre Dame next season, a well-regarded program that plays a very responsible and defensive-minded system. Given Heinbuck's quote, sounds like a great fit for Rust's style.

Tom Küehnhackl (left wing) - Fourth round - 110th overall

"In the long view, Kühnhackl has been compared to Marco Sturm in that he is fast, agile, possesses great acceleration and plays well in both zones.  He's much larger than Sturm, and possesses more high-end skill." -Derek Zona (SB Nation blog Copper n Blue)

One of the more interesting picks, Küehnhackl will go from his native Germany to the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL next season. His father is considered the best hockey player ever from Germany and the son appears to have a lot of skill as well. Küehnhackl definitely needs to fill out and gain strength. He also had a disappointing U-18 tournament in Slovakia, which is probably why he fell down to the fourth round.

Ken Agostino (left wing) - Fifth round - 140th overall

"Skill package is excellent. His feet need to get a little quicker. He realizes that. But he brings that down low puck protection skill." - Jay Heinbuck

Agostino is from the same high school as Alex Velischek, last year's No. 5 pick. He's off to play at Yale and seems to be a guy that most fans won't think of for many years. Players in this range sometimes aren't even signed to professional contracts, so if he develops into getting signed by the Pens that'll show that he's improved some of his weaknesses.

Joe Rogalski (defense) - Sixth round - 152nd overall and Reid McNeil (defense) - Sixth round - 170th overall

Both described by Heinbuck as "very raw"

Both are about the same - defensemen from the Ontario Hockey League with good size and both were taken in the same round and have a similar outlook. In a few years we'll see if either progress enough to earn a professional contract and get to work their way up the Penguins organization. It's an uphill battle as a lower round draft pick, but the cream rises to the top.

Photographs by dizfunk used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.