The first round of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft has wrapped up with no new movements for the Pittsburgh Penguins who still await their first pick at #46 in the second round. While most of the players that were expected to go in the first round were indeed selected on the opening night of the draft there are still a few that will still be available in the next round. If they continue to slide some of these players may even still be around by the time the Penguins take their first pick.
Jeremy Roy is a 6-foot, 185-pound, right-handed defenseman who spent the past two years with the QMJHL Sherbrooke Phoenix. He served as an alternate captain and had 43 points in 46 regular season games plus an additional 5 points through 6 playoff games last season. He is a former QMJHL Defensive Rookie of the Year whose play style has been compared to that of Duncan Keith.
Jansen Harkins is a 6-foot-1, 183-pound, left-handed forward who spent the past two years with the WHL Prince George Cougars. He served as an alternate captain and had 79 points in 70 regular season games plus an additional 4 points through 5 playoff games last season. His play style has been compared to that of David Krejci.
Daniel Sprong is a 6-foot, 183-pound, right-handed forward who spent the past two years with the QMJHL Charlottetown Islanders. He had 88 points in 68 regular season games plus an additional 11 points through 10 playoff games last season.
Paul Bittner (pictured above) is a 6-foot-4, 203-pound, left-handed forward who spent the past three years with the WHL Portland Winterhawks. Two of those seasons were played under Penguins head coach Mike Johnston. He had 71 points in 66 regular season games plus an additional 12 points through 17 playoff games last season.
Filip Chlapik is a 6-foot-1, 196-pound, left-handed forward who came to North America from the Czech Republic to play for the QMJHL Charlottetown Islanders last year. He had 75 points in 64 regular season games plus an additional 9 points in 9 playoff games last season. He made the QMJHL All-Rookie Team and finished the year with the most goals scored by a rookie.
Brandon Carlo is a 6-foot-5, 196-pound, right-handed defenseman who spent the past two years with the WHL Tri-City Americans. He had 25 points in 63 regular season games plus an additional 1 point through 4 playoff games last season.
Nicolas Roy is a 6-foot-4, 198-pound, right-handed forward who spent the past two years with the QMJHL Chicoutimi Sagueneens. He had 50 points in 68 regular season games plus an additional 5 points through 5 playoff games last season.
Also still available are those players that were previously covered in our Penguins 2015 draft preview: defenseman Oliver Kylington and forwards Jeremy Bracco and Alexander Dergachyov. Keep an eye out for additional players that were ranked highly by various scouts that should be selected in the early rounds.
Photo credit: NHL and QMJHL
