Defenseman Ryan Lin could be available to the Penguins when they pick at No. 22 in the first round. Here's our draft profile on him.
Believe it or not, we're only a month away from the 2026 NHL Draft, which will be held from June 26-27 in Buffalo.
Hype is beginning to build for it, especially since the 2026 NHL Combine is also in Buffalo from June. 1-6. It's set to start on Monday and go through next Saturday, giving teams the chance to meet with and interview some of the top prospects. Teams can also get physical assessments for the players and review their medicals.
The Pittsburgh Penguins will have members of their front office there to talk with some of the players who could be available to them at No. 22 in the first round.
One of the players who could be there is defenseman Ryan Lin, who spent the 2025-26 season with the WHL's Vancouver Giants. He finished this past season with 14 goals and 57 points in 53 games and is set to play for the University of Denver during the 2026-27 season.
When I watch Lin play, the words "steady" and "reliable" come to mind. He's always in a good position and has good pinching tendencies. He really knows when to pull back and avoid what I like to call "30/70" pinches.
He also knows exactly when to jump into the play, and there were numerous moments throughout this season when he would smartly come down and absolutely rifle the puck. He's not afraid to rip it when he gets the chance.
Lin has experience quarterbacking the power play and has had some impressive keeps at the blue line. One example I keep coming back to is from the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Semifinal between Canada and Team USA, when he dove across to keep the puck at the point. Tynan Lawrence then corralled the puck along the boards before cutting to the slot and firing the puck home.
He also moves the puck extremely well from his own zone, and an example of this comes from Vancouver's game against Kamloops this past season. Lin started from behind his net and quickly got a burst of speed coming out of his own zone. He quickly gained the red line before skating the puck into the offensive zone, dropping the puck off for a teammate. The puck was in the back of the net two seconds later, and it all started because of Lin's breakout.
He's a solid skater with good hockey IQ, but I still think he could bulk up a bit. He's currently listed at 5'11 and 176 lbs, but the important thing to remember is that he's still only 18.
Finally, his own-zone play is really solid, along with his gap control. He's an all-around solid defenseman who will have numerous teams looking at him in the first round.
The Penguins should be one of those teams, since they still need to add more to their defensive pipeline. It'll all come down to whether or not Lin is there when it's their turn to pick. If he is, he'd be a good pick with a chance to become a reliable top-four defenseman.
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