Which first-round NHL Draft pick will Penguins get from Rangers?: Mailbag

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We are overdue for Part 2 of the monthly mailbag. Part 1 published on Monday.

There is much to discuss, including some thoughts on the Pittsburgh Penguins coaching search, Mike Sullivan and the draft pick that everyone is so interested in.

Away we go.

What do the Rangers do with their first-round pick? — @timtam

Let’s not beat around the bush. This is a question on many of your minds.

So, what precisely will the New York Rangers do? Here are the details: The Rangers have been awarded the 12th pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. If they’d like, they may keep that selection. Doing so guarantees that the Penguins own the Rangers’ 2026 first-round pick. The Rangers also have the option to give the Penguins the 12th pick this June, which will allow the Rangers to keep their 2026 pick.

Keep in mind: By all accounts, the 2026 draft class is considerably stronger than the 2025 draft class.

There are so many ways to look at this. The Rangers have a talented roster and just added Sullivan as their head coach. Thus, I’d think they have high expectations next season. So, you might think they’d keep this pick and ditch the 2026 offering, as they figure they’ll be drafting somewhere in the 20s next June. Then again, they may prefer to use that 2026 pick as very powerful trade bait. It would also be nice insurance for them if the upcoming season goes poorly.

If I’m the Penguins, I’d rather have that 2026 pick because the Rangers are the ultimate high-ceiling, low-floor team. They could be a contender with Sullivan and that roster, sure. But there was something very wrong with that team last season. Their best players are old, and Chris Drury has a ton to prove as a president and general manager.

I’m guessing the Rangers will give the Penguins the 12th pick this year. I also strongly remind you that this is just a guess. It’s a totally fascinating selection.

The Rangers don’t have to make up their minds until 48 hours before the draft, which certainly makes the Penguins’ draft strategy more uneasy. If the Penguins are awarded the pick, I wonder if they’d consider trading up, given that they’d have the 11th and 12th picks. They’re doing a good job of adding quantity to their prospect pool. What they need is a star or two. In this draft, you need to find yourself in the top five to land one of those, in all probability.

What is your best Mike Sullivan story? — @29TimKing

I covered his day with the Stanley Cup at his home in Boston in 2017. A team official told me I could stay for around an hour or two but that I should leave once my interviews were complete because it was a family function. Totally fair.

So after an hour or two, I’m sitting in the Sullivan backyard (phenomenal pool, by the way) and I’m packing my laptop. Sullivan walks over to me and asks, “Where are you going?”

I responded: I was told I should stay for only an hour or two because it’s a family function.

Sullivan looked at me and said, “Do you see (the team official) anywhere?”

I shook my head.

“You’re staying,” he said, “and you’re drinking Guinness.”

I respect the Penguins’ policies, procedures and requests, but I stayed a while longer.

Why was Sullivan given such a long leash? His style of play hasn’t changed in seven years. The team did not improve and for all the good that is said he appears from the outside to be intractable and stubborn. — @P1Stak3r

Winning championships is a good way to give yourself some job security.

Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang have a lot of power, and they love him.

Kyle Dubas was very impressed with him from afar and up close.

Fenway Sports Group officials immediately loved him and considered him their Bill Belichick (in a good way).

Add it all up, and it’s easy to see why he stayed for so long.

Any word on Jaromir Jagr coming back to the organization? — @JCarnsMusic

There is not. Kevin Acklin, the Penguins president of business operations, is leaving the organization, which could create a hangup in the organization’s desire to land Jagr in some capacity. Jagr really likes Acklin and developed a relationship with him.

It still could happen, of course. The thing with Jagr is, you just never know. He may feel like it one day, but change his mind the next.

I think I speak for everyone in Western Pennsylvania when I say the more Jagr is around, the better.

How much of what’s happening is a direct influence of Ron Hextall? — @Utica_Club

Not as much as you might think. He was not a good general manager, and the Penguins absolutely got worse on his watch. But what we’re seeing now was always going to happen at some point. It was inevitable.

The worst thing Hextall did for the Penguins’ current situation was give Kris Letang a six-year deal. Ryan Graves and Tristan Jarry? That’s on Kyle Dubas.

More than anything, though, it’s just a time thing. In 2012, would you have been surprised to know that the Penguins weren’t very good in 2025? Probably not.

I’m not sure if Kyle Dubas cares, but if you ever talk to him, let him know that the fans are behind him and support his vision 100 percent. — @WatchPGHSports

You’re supposed to ask a question!

Just kidding. I’m including this because it reminds me of a story. I ran into Dubas and his wife, Shannon, at the Night of Assists gala a little more than a year ago. Right before the Jake Guentzel trade. I joked with Dubas that fans were surely giving him proposals of which players they’d like him to acquire before the trade deadline.

Dubas seemed a little surprised and responded, “They’re all telling me to sell and rebuild.”

I’ve gotten to know him well enough to assure you that he does care what the fans think. Quite a bit. He wants to do things the right way. It’s just a matter of properly executing his plan.

Josh, if you could have one playoff series between 2010-15 or 2018-22 end differently, what series would it be? How do you think it would have ended up that season for the Penguins? — @USignItIChugIt

Oh, that’s an easy one. I’d have loved to have seen the Penguins beat Boston in the 2013 Eastern Conference finals. The Penguins were better than the Bruins but were hurt by the NHL giving them eight days off before that series. They never recovered.

I would have enjoyed seeing them win that series because it would have given us the Penguins versus the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup Final. They were the two best teams of their generation and, remarkably, never met in a Stanley Cup Final.

Who would win that series? It remains a mystery and always will. Those Blackhawks teams typically gave the Penguins fits. They were truly great. Then again, I’ve sensed that Crosby was, at times, a bit annoyed by all the winning that the Blackhawks did during that time and the attention they received. He never said that. Just something I sensed. I’m not sure he would have let the Penguins lose on that stage, dead in his prime. Sure wish we could have seen it.

Think Geno will play in Russia after he’s done? — @bondoa6

I suppose anything is possible. If Russia is granted permission to enter the Olympics next February in Milan, I’m sure he’d play there.

But I’m guessing Malkin will play one more NHL season, retire and spend the rest of his days living the good life in Miami. He’s certainly earned it.

Will the Pens ever be good again? — @TJWatt_Is_MVP

Of course they will.

The Penguins have a strong organization, and Dubas knows what he’s doing. It may take a while longer. But I wouldn’t give up hope on them. They have real prospects on the way and an enormous amount of high draft picks in the next three years. Dubas is willing to take his lumps over the next year or two in an attempt to build something special.

My guess? They probably won’t be good in the 2025-26 season. Anything is possible, but I could see that year being a struggle.

Next summer — only 13-14 months, so we’re almost there — you’re going to see Dubas get very aggressive in free agency and on the trade market. I think that’s when the Penguins make their move.

Josh, please answer the question that everyone wants to ask: Will Marc-Andre Fleury retire as a Penguin? — @jmadden34

I kind of doubt it. He doesn’t know the ownership here, he doesn’t know Dubas, he doesn’t know any of the coaches (well, not many remain), and only Crosby, Malkin, Letang and Bryan Rust remain from his playing days.

Fleury feels no animosity toward the city or the Penguins. He loves it here. But he was ready to move on in 2017. I think he’ll always consider himself a Penguin, but his legacy is much more complex.

He’ll make return trips to Pittsburgh. I’m sure his No. 29 will be retired. My hunch is that he won’t do one of those silly one-day contracts, which is OK.

But I’ll make you a deal: I’ll ask him. I’m on my way to Sweden on Monday to cover the World Championships. I assure you I’ll have a conversation or two with Flower, and I’ll raise this topic.

Thanks for reading, everyone. Coverage on the coaching search, Crosby and Fleury in Sweden together, and much more is on the way next week.

(Photo of Rangers president and GM Chris Drury: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)

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