Pittsburgh Penguins' Brayden Yager skates during the first period of a preseason NHL hockey game against the Columbus Blue Jackets in Pittsburgh, Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Gene J. Puskar
WINNIPEG – The Winnipeg Jets and Pittsburgh Penguins swapped forward prospects Thursday, with the Jets landing Brayden Yager for the rights to Rutger McGroarty.
Yager was Pittsburgh’s first-round pick (14th overall) at the 2023 NHL draft.
The 19-year-old from Saskatoon had 35 goals and 60 assists in 57 regular-season games and 27 points (11G, 16A) in 20 playoff contests to help the Moose Jaw Warriors win the Western Hockey League title last season.
He added six points in four games at the 2024 Memorial Cup and he was named to the tournament all-star team.
The Jets selected McGroarty 14th overall in the 2022 draft. The 20-year-old from Lincoln, Neb., had 52 points (16 goals, 36 assists) in 36 games with the University of Michigan in 2023-24.
Both players competed at the 2024 world junior hockey championship in Gothenburg, Sweden. McGroarty was the captain of the United States and had five goals and four assists in leading his country to gold. Yager had two goals and three assists as Canada finished fifth.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 22, 2024.
