Penguins Select Brayden Yager with the 14th Selection in 2023 NHL Draft

The Pittsburgh Penguins have selected forward Brayden Yager with their top pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. Yager was taken as the 14th overall selection in the first round.

Entering the draft, Yager was the no. 11 ranked North American skater by the NHL Central Scouting.

Yager, 18, spent his 2022-23 season as an alternate captain of the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League. Yager recorded career highs in points (78) and assists (50), and his 78 points ranked second on the Warriors and 22nd in the WHL. Yager also appeared in a career-high 67 games during the 2022-23 campaign.

His 16 points (6G-10A) in 10 playoff games were second most on the Warriors, and his sixth-ranked 1.60 points-per-game average helped lead the team to the second round of the 2023 WHL Playoffs.

Over the last three seasons with the Warriors, the 5-foot-11, 170-pound forward has totaled 155 points (69G-86A) in 154 regular-season games and 23 points (9G-14A) in 20 playoff games. Yager received the CHL Rookie of the Year and WHL Rookie of the Year awards in 2021-22, before being named the WHL Most Sportsmanlike Player in 2022-23.

A native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Yager was an alternate captain for Team Canada during the U18 Hlinka Gretzky Cup in 2022-23. His nine points (5G-4A) in five games were second most on the team in a Gold Medal effort.