Owen Pickering didn’t make his Travis Sanheim leap yet, but he’s looking to get there

The Pens’ former first round pick is growing and ready to turn pro

With 2024 Penguins development camp in full swing (and wrapping up today), here’s the latest in our profiles on some of the most intriguing players putting in their summer work and some various storylines worth tracking in the hot, hot heat.

-Ville Koivunen’s hockey IQ could help the Guentzel trade return
-Sergei Murashov showing up was a pleasant surprise, and more could be coming soon
-Brayden Yager is the crown jewel of the Pens’ prospect pool now, and playing in the WHL would suit him well in 2024-25
-In 2004, Sidney Crosby participated in a summer development camp with the Kings

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The draft day comps for Owen Pickering align very similarly to another Ron Hextall first round pick of the past in Travis Sanheim. The similarities were immediately noticeable even prior to the 2022 draft.

Both were lanky and lengthy left handed defensemen from the WHL. Both had good skating mobility and could play the puck, but still required some imagination and development to fulfill and grow into their upside.

It didn’t take long for that to happen for Sanheim. Right after he was drafted in 2014, his offensive game exploded over the next two seasons in junior, going from 29 points in his draft year to 65 points the following campaign. After turning pro, Sanheim spent draft+3 exclusively in the AHL, then took a season split between AHL/NHL in draft+4 before graduating into being a legitimate NHL top-four contributor in the seasons since and becoming quietly one of the stronger all-around defenders in the game right now.

It looks like a simple and easy progression a decade after the fact, but this is a textbook example of a best case scenario. A prospect is drafted at age-18 as an unfinished product, and a team’s belief in the prospect is rewarded with immediate and seemingly consistent growth over the years. Frankly, the steady upward progress is the type of success story that tends to be more of the exception than the rule, setting up for big skates to fill for comparable players down the line.

Unfortunately for Hextall with the Pens (not that he cares anymore), the Sanheim comparison for 2022 first round pick Owen Pickering has drifted away since draft day. There would be no Team Canada World Junior participation, and while Pickering’s production increases, it leaves much to be desired as an indicator that his offensive game will be a factor at the pro levels.

There were some reasons and context behind Pickering failing to launch as immediately and satisfactorily as Sanheim did. And now the Penguins hope that the bloom is still to come as a professional.

“It’s been a couple of tough training camps for Pick not being able to participate,” Assistant General Manager Jason Spezza said. “So we’re excited to have him, we’re excited to see that he’s healthy. This is a big summer for him. Turning pro, it’s a big jump from junior hockey. So, I love that he has enthusiasm, wants to come in and bang the door down and make the Penguins. We’ll welcome that challenge and judge him by how he’s playing, and put him on the right path.”

Weight gain and retention has been a major issue for Pickering, whose metabolism following a massive teenage growth spurt sent him from 5’7” to now nearly 6’5” in a few years. Packing on pounds and muscle while dealing with injuries and that growth has been an issue, but one that hard work is addressing now.

“I was a lot skinnier when I played in the [AHL] a couple years ago, and a lot less mature. I feel like I’m more ready for pro hockey now,” said Pickering, who also joined WBS this spring to be around the environment despite not playing.

Pickering is eating 6-7 meals daily, including a morning shot of olive oil to ensure he starts getting calories as early as possible.

“There’s certain tricks according to the dietitian,” Pickering said. “She’s great at it. I talk to her a lot, she helps me. So, I just kind of put it in their hands and they tell me what to do, and I just kind of do it.

Now the fun really begins for Pickering. He was something of a raw pick with upside two years ago and will start his professional career likely the same way in Wilkes this fall. At only 20-years old he’s got nothing but time ahead to keep on growing on and off the ice in the hopes that he can make an NHL impact down the line.