Penguins Draft Pick Zam Plante Models Game After Jake Guentzel
"She was like, you got drafted by some blue and gold team," Zam said with a laugh. "That ended up being Buffalo."
Now, over three decades later, Zam has been drafted by a black and gold team - the Pittsburgh Penguins. The franchise selected the 17-year-old forward in the fifth round (150th overall) of the 2022 NHL Draft on Friday in Montreal, which the entire family attended in person so that Zam could have a more memorable experience than his father did.
"My dad asked me, he was like, 'Do you want to go?' I'm like, 'Sure, yeah, sweet!" Zam said. "It's like the best feeling ever. They helped me get here, so having them here is a dream come true as well."
They traveled there from Minnesota, where Zam came along following the conclusion of his dad's pro career. So he never actually got the chance to watch Derek play during his eight seasons in the NHL, with Buffalo, Chicago, Dallas - where he won a Stanley Cup in 1999 - and Philadelphia. Also a forward, Derek produced 96 goals and 152 assists for 248 points in 450 regular season games.
"The only YouTube videos I've really seen are when he was with Buffalo," Zam said. "So that's what I remember, when he was with the Sabres."
So while his dad was obviously a huge influence on him, when it came to players and teams he actually watched growing up, Zam said he actually always had a soft spot for the Penguins.
They won their first Stanley Cup when he was 4 years old, and a few years later, they won two more, the second coming with the help of fellow Minnesota native Jake Guentzel after he had been drafted by the Penguins in the third round of the 2013 draft.
"I liked watching Crosby and then they got Guentzel, so I like watching Guentzel," Plante said. "I've paid attention to them and then they were winning Cups when I was a lot younger, so I've always had a spot for the Penguins, and I like them."
As Plante was putting on his new Penguins jersey for the first time following his selection, he looked up to see that VP of communications Jen Bullano had gotten Guentzel on a FaceTime call so he could say congratulations.
"No way," Plante said in disbelief as he looked up.
"I was just watching you guys. (The feed) is late because we're just seeing you guys meet the draft table," Guentzel said. "Congrats, man. That's unreal. Are you excited?"
"Yeah, really excited," Plante said. "A dream come true."
Zam Plante, a Minnesota native, models his game after Jake Guentzel. Before he could even tell the media that fun fact, @jakeguentz had already facetimed the Penguins prospect to congratulate him on being drafted. 🥰 pic.twitter.com/D59RKfVahi
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) July 8, 2022
Plante tries to model his game after Guentzel, saying that as a player who's not overly big - he currently measures 5-foot-10 and 165 pounds - he wants to get faster and stronger on the puck.
"Then I think my playmaking ability, 200 feet up and down the ice, being able to make plays in the defensive zone - that's probably my biggest attribute," Plante said.
He flew to Pittsburgh on Saturday morning ahead of development camp, which begins on Sunday. In the fall, Plante plans to play one more year with the USHL's Chicago Steel before heading to Minnesota-Duluth, where both of his parents went to school and Derek currently serves as associate head coach.
Penguins director of amateur scouting Nick Pryor said that spending more time learning from his father can only be beneficial for Zam moving forward.
"Being around the rink at a young age like Zam was and seeing what it takes to make it to the NHL level, I don't think hurts at all," Pryor said. "He's been through it with his dad. His dad was a very good player. Zam's just one of those kids. He's been around the rink his whole life. He's got a good feel for the amount of time that it's going to take to get to that NHL level. We were just really excited about him. I keep coming back to his hockey sense, his skill, his compete. He's going to give himself a good chance because of that."
