From Little Penguins to the NHL

Photo courtesy of Rena Laverty / USA Hockey's NTDP
When Sidney Crosby first had the idea to establish the Little Penguins Learn to Play Program years ago, the main goal was always just to increase participation in hockey.
"But we had always said, we're probably going to have a player that comes out of it who ends up playing high-level college hockey, or hopefully goes on and plays pro," said Rich Hixon, the Penguins' senior vice president of facilities, who helped oversee the growth of the team's youth hockey initiatives. "That was really our goal. Now, at the time, we didn't know that player was going to come from our first year of the program."

That player is West Mifflin native Logan Cooley, who is set to be a first-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft - with many projecting him to go in the top-10 - after getting his start in the inaugural 2008-09 season.
He is by far the youngest player selected to Team USA's roster for this year's World Junior Championship, which begins today and goes through Jan. 5 in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta, and just the second-ever 17-year-old. The sky is the limit for the blue-chip prospect with Pittsburgh roots, which is something really special to the Penguins captain.
"I think I just look at that as being really cool, because the purpose of it is to introduce kids to the game and give them the opportunity," Crosby said. "The fact that he fell in love with the game and obviously has done really well is awesome to see. But I think at the same time, it's just about getting the opportunity. So I'm glad that it's worked out that way."
Logan is the third of four Cooley siblings, following older brothers Eric, now 23, and Riley, now 21, who had already been playing hockey for a while when he came along on May 4, 2004. At the time, the boys were on AT&T SportsNet color analyst Bob Errey's local youth spring team called the Pittsburgh Mega Men, and they had a showcase up in Montreal.
"And we weren't going to get left behind, so Logan was at the rink when he was 11 days old," Logan's mom Cathy recalled with a laugh. "That was his life."
As soon as he was old enough, Logan would walk around the house wearing his brothers' equipment every chance he got. He wanted nothing more than to start playing himself, but Cathy and her husband Eric already had their hands full with the two older kids.
"It was trying to hold Logan off timing-wise, because the other two were both in travel hockey, so it was very time-consuming," Cathy said. "But he just couldn't wait for his opportunity."
When Logan was 4 years old, Cathy's brother - who has a daughter around the same age -told her about a new initiative called the Little Penguins Learn to Play Program, an introductory program for children ages 5 to 9 that would provide first-time participants free head-to-toe equipment along with age-appropriate on-ice instruction by certified coaches.
"When my brother proposed the idea, it was like, okay, we have no excuse," Cathy said. "One, it's free. Two, it gives them a taste of it without getting totally hook, line and sinker involved. So it was perfect. It was truly a perfect program for us at the time."
And after taking Logan to his first session over at the Rostraver Ice Garden, getting him outfitted in his new gear and getting him on the ice, there was no turning back.
"He just loved it. He truly loved it from Day 1," Cathy said. "And for him to get a chance to get equipment that was his size was priceless, because it was a matter of time before he broke his ankle wearing those skates that were too big."
Especially equipment that included a Penguins jersey with Crosby's No. 87 on the back.
"He loves Sid," Cathy said. "Admired him, for sure. He particularly loved that he got equipment from Sid. The brothers just got it from Mom and Dad (laughs). He still has a Fathead (decal) of Crosby on his bedroom wall."
While Logan did end up becoming a fan of Washington's Alex Ovechkin, he still has nothing but respect and admiration for the Penguins captain for initiatives like this one, and for how involved he is with the whole program.
"Hockey's a really expensive sport, and I think being able to get free equipment and have Crosby out on the ice… obviously you're really young, but any chance learn from him, he's one of the best players in the world, if not the best," Logan said. "Anything you can take from him and try to put in your game and grow as a person and player from him was something that's really cool and helped me along the way, and I'm really grateful for that."
After graduating from Little Penguins to local youth teams like the Mon Valley Thunder and Pittsburgh Predators, Logan then played five seasons for the DICK'S Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Penguins Elite before joining the U.S. National Team Development Program. He started the 2020-21 campaign with the Under-17 Team, but eventually got moved up to the Under-18 Team, scoring 20 goals and 46 points in 47 games split between the squads.
In July, Cooley earned an invite to the World Junior Summer Showcase, which included the U.S., Finland and Sweden and served as an evaluation for athletes looking to make their national team for the World Junior Championship.
Cooley then posted 14 goals and 30 points in just 20 games with the Under-18 Team to begin the 2021-22 season before going to the World Junior Selection Camp at the beginning of the month, and ultimately making the team.
"It's still shocking that he's even at the NTDP," Cathy said. "That was always a dream. One of his goals was always the NTDP, then it was the NTDP and the NHL. It's just crazy to look back on those days and think like, we are knocking on the door. This is becoming real. It's crazy. It's just crazy. To be able to go to Worlds is just beyond. To put that USA jersey on, oh my goodness… it's too much."
"It's just amazing," Eric agreed. "Going through with the other boys, too, there's so many different routes and things happen… it's just truly amazing. I just can't believe it's happening."
Adam Nightingale, one of Cooley's coaches at the USNTDP, said what makes the 5-foot-10, 178-pound forward's future so bright is that he's a gifted skater who's super smart and competitive.
"I think he can be a top-line center in the in the NHL," Nightingale said. "He makes the players around him better, uses his skating to create time and space for both him and his teammates, plays both ends of the rink. I just think he's got all those tools, and he's got drive. And then I think at a young age, he understands what being zero maintenance is. He's professional about working on his game, and doesn't expect special treatment. And I think that's a great quality that he has."
Cooley could become the highest-drafted Pittsburgh-area player in history ahead of J.T. Miller, who was taken 15th overall by the New York Rangers in 2011. That year turned out to be an incredible one for western Pennsylvania, as local products John Gibson (39th overall, Anaheim), Brandon Saad (43rd overall, Chicago) and Vince Trocheck (64th overall, Florida) were also selected and have all gone on to craft great NHL careers.
"There's a few players that have come out of Pittsburgh, and they've been really successful," Logan said. "Just trying to make like a name for Pittsburgh and keep growing it as a hockey town is something I take a lot of pride in and want to keep doing, and hopefully get a bigger name for Pittsburgh and keep growing the Pens Elite, which is a great organization."
But Cooley is doing his best not to look too far ahead. He's focused on helping Team USA win its second straight gold medal, just like he remembers watching Gibson, Miller and Trocheck helping the Americans do back in 2013.
"It's been a pretty busy year so far," Cooley said. "Obviously, when I'm on the 18 team, I'm just focusing on the NTDP and helping the team then. But right now, you know, my mind isn't really on the draft. It's helping this team win another gold medal. It's in the back of your mind, but it's something you have to put off and let your play do the talking."