An intriguing WHL prospect that carries the size of what the Penguins are looking for in the draft.
Welcome back to our feature on draft profiles for projected top picks in the upcoming 2025 NHL draft. Catch up with the previous ones here:
No 1: Matthew Schaefer
No 2: Michael Misa
No. 3: Porter Martone
No. 4: Anton Frondell
No. 5: James Hagens
No. 6: Caleb Desnoyers
No. 7: Jake O’Brien
No. 8: Roger McQueen
No. 9: Victor Eklund
No. 10: Jackson Smith
No. 11: Radim Mrtka
No. 12: Brady Martin
No. 13: Carter Bear
No. 14 Kashawn Aitcheson
No. 15: Logan Hensler
For the rankings, we have turned to the venerable Bob McKenzie from TSN for his listing of players. McKenzie’s list is typically in-tune with the NHL, because his rankings are an average that comes from surveying 10 active NHL scouts. As such, the list is set as follows for players we will look to profile in the coming weeks to spread some awareness and knowledge for Pittsburgh NHL fans to get to know some of the top prospects.
No. 16: Lynden Lakovic, 6’4” 190 pounds, LW, Moose Jaw (WHL)
There wasn’t much to celebrate in Moose Jaw this season, but one silver lining to a season that saw them only win 15 games was the success of future first round pick Lynden Lakovic. Coming in at No. 16 in our draft prospect series, Lakovic was the star on a Moose Jaw team who struggled all season long. In just 47 games played. Lakovic led the Warriors with 58 points, including a team leading 27 goals.
While Lakovic comes in around middle of pack in our prospect preview, he’s all over the map when looking at several different scouting rankings from various outlets.
From as high as 7th to as low as 30th, Lakovic is all over the map, making him an intriguing prospect to see where teams may have him ranked on their individual big boards come the draft. There doesn’t appear to be a clear consensus on Lakovic other than he is a first round talent, and a lot of what determines where he is selected depends on how the first round plays out.
One thing that does stand out is his height. At 6’4”, Lakovic is the third tallest of the prospects highlighted so far and the second tallest among all forwards. At 190 pounds, he ranks seventh among the prospects on the list above. If reports are true and Kyle Dubas and his staff are prioritizing size in the draft, Lakovic could be one of the names to highlight at No. 11 (or No. 12 if the Rangers give up their pick).
Highlights of Lakovic feature an array of both scoring and assists, showing off his full offensive repertoire. He wasn’t blessed with a ton of talent around him at Moose Jaw, but he still posted big numbers in a limited number of games. Compared to 2023-24 with Moose Jaw, Lakovic improved his scoring numbers by almost 20 points while playing in 21 less games.
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They said it
Lakovic was the best player on a poor Moose Jaw team, but his body of work plus his athleticism is impressive. He’s a 6-foot-4 winger who skates quite well for his size. He has a powerful and fluid stride and can easily avoid checkers. He’s a creative offensive player with the hands to make defenders miss often. Lakovic sees the ice well enough but scouts aren’t fully convinced on that aspect of his game. He’s more of a scorer than a passer with a legit mid-range shot. His compete level is mediocre. It won’t hold him back at the top level, but I wouldn’t call him a hard-to-play-against type who makes full use of his big frame and he plays too much on the outside. He projects as a top-six winger.
Player Comp: Anthony Mantha
Lakovic is a 6-foot-4 winger who can really fly and blends good handles and scoring touch into his movements nicely. He protects pucks well, can get off the wall and has taken strides to keep his head up on the puck and survey/use his linemates better and better. He’s still got room to improve his scanning, off-puck play and decision-making, and his physicality needs to be more consistent, but his ability both in transition and protecting pucks in the offensive zone can really pop and he’s got clear top-nine projectability with good coaching. When he’s on pucks and up and under sticks and winning inside body positioning, he can be really noticeable in a game with his skating, strength, power and skill. He’s got quick hands and can take D one-on-one as well. Lakovic was a standout of one of the CHL-USA Prospects Challenge games and was on a 13-game point streak when he went down with a fractured collarbone that sidelined him from the end of December to the middle of February (he heated back up after returning with Moose Jaw team that has entered a full rebuild post-deadline, too). He’ll go shortly after the top 10 somewhere and I debated ranking him a couple of spots higher.
Lakovic is so much fun to watch, and while he’s not putting up explosive offensive numbers, he reads plays so well and has an excellent shot. Things just seem to happen whenever he has the puck on the rush, and at 6-foot-4, he’s got tremendous size. Some scouts think he’s going to be more of a second-liner at best. He drives the play a bit like Dmitri Voronkov, but I’d like to see it more consistently. Some scouts think he’s not a good enough skater to go high in the draft, but I like his NHL potential.
A player that has bounced around the second half of my Round 1 rankings all season long. He skates really well, and has excellent puck skills. There is definitely room for more grit and grind in his game, and that may come as he will be challenged nightly next season on a rebuilding Moose Jaw team.
NHL Projection: Middle six forward. Even strength. Power play.
Lakovic is an intriguing prospect. He’s a big body forward who can be elusive in open ice with his effortless stride. He’s difficult to check when he’s handling the puck due to his long reach and stature. He has excellent puck touch for a big man and contributed 27G-31A in 47 games for Moose Jaw this year.
With the Warriors not qualifying for the playoffs his season has come to an end. Lakovic is a late birthday (Dec. 12, 2006). He has aged out of being eligible for the U18 World Championship and his style of play will be debated in scouting meetings leading up to the draft. For his stature he isn’t physically overpowering, he’s more of a finesse forward.
Lakovic is, in his own words, a winner. He was instrumental in the Moose Jaw Warriors’ first Western Hockey League (WHL) Championship last season, scoring three game-winning goals in overtime and another in regulation throughout the playoffs. This season, the Warriors traded away a significant portion of their veteran core from their historic win, yet Lakovic remained just as effective, leading the team with 27 goals, including three game-winners, and 58 points. Had an injury not kept him off the ice for a month and a half, he was on pace to score 39 goals and over 80 points. No other draft-eligible prospect in the WHL did more with less talent around him.
I’ll admit that after our interview with Lynden Lakovic, I’m a little bit biased in his favor. He just seems like a kid who sees the game similarly to how I do. Tactically, procedurally, logically and from a bird’s eye view featuring everyone he’s on the ice with. Similar to Martone, Lakovic just drives great results in almost every discipline. I think people are down on him a bit because of his size and clear lack of physicality and hitting ability, but frankly I don’t think that’s a huge hurdle. Sure, he might need to gain a bit more of an edge to be more effective defensively in the NHL, but the skating ability, skill, reach, and finishing ability is undeniable and awesome. Similarly to Martone, I don’t think Lakovic is a central line driver, but he’s an elite complimentary piece working give and goes in the neutral zone well, with great puck touches and anticipation skill before receiving pucks. He rarely takes a poor shot in the offensive zone, protecting the puck well and looking for seams and pathways to better scoring areas, driving some of the best shooting metrics among my highly tracked players. In the offensive zone, he’s simply lights out, with great forechecking ability, strong playmaking metrics and remarkable finishing ability. 56% of Moose Jaw’s offensive output has flowed through Lakovic somehow, and without him that team would be completely different. I don’t know what his NHL future is, but to me if you don’t get a Porter Martone, Lynden Lakovic might not be a bad consolation prize.
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From perusing scouting reports and big boards, Lakovic is a well regarded prospect coming into the 2025 NHL Draft, but little has connected him to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Most projections have him going in the latter half of the first round, after the Penguins have made their selection, even if they get the Rangers pick. His size does fit the mold of what the Penguins are rumored to be looking for in the draft, but unless the chips fall in a way that pushes Lakovic into better positioning, taking him at No. 11 might be more of a stretch than Dubas is willing to make, especially with who else could be on the board at that time.