Tristan Broz making highlights as pro career begins

It’s been a down and up experience for the former second round pick already

It’s the most whale shit of summer hockey, but it was fun to see Penguins’ prospect Tristan Broz score a highlight reel goal in Minnesota’s Da Beauty League earlier this week.

The Pens will be hoping the summer league work continues the upward trajectory for Broz. A second round pick in 2021, Broz endured a nightmare 2021-22 freshman season at the University of Minnesota. After putting up only 11 points in 36 games and failing to gain traction with that team, Broz made a tough call to transfer to Denver. It’s paid off over the last two seasons, highlighted by the Pioneers run to an NCAA championship this year.

Broz was front and center on that team, scoring not one but two overtime goals in the NCAA tournament. That’s a big time glow up for a player who needed it.

As Broz told the Tribune Review:

“I think I’ve come pretty far,” said Broz, 21. “Just looking back on where I was as an 18-year-old getting drafted here, I feel like I was pretty immature. Coming in now, I feel like I’ve just matured a lot, grown a lot. Put on (muscle) and just kind of grown into my body more. Come a really long way since then. I think I was a little kid back then.”

When the Penguins drafted the 6-foot Broz, he weighed in at a svelte 178 pounds. During his final season with Denver, he played at a beefier 190 pounds.

“I’ve had to force myself to eat a little more, starting probably around when I was in high school,” Broz said. “But it’s come a bit more naturally to me. The biggest thing has been in the weight room, just pushing myself, realizing how big of an aspect that is. Now, I’m starting to realize that I have put on that weight. It’s gaining more confidence in the corners and battles and protecting the puck. Now that I have it, being able to use it more and to get to the inside and use that to my advantage.”

Another advantage has been his perseverance.

“He’s been one of our most intriguing prospects to follow the last few years,” Penguins director of player development Tom Kostopoulos said. “He’s been through some adversity and battled it. He’s been very resilient. Just his season last year, it’s amazing the way it went for him, some ups and downs and then he really took off in the second half and then the (NCAA Tournament). … He seems really dedicated to his training right now. … It’s great to see him and how he keeps maturing and growing as a player.

“He’s always had the skill set, but you can see the work ethic and attitude.”

Having perseverance and doing some growing up on and off the ice is something that can be impossible for NHL teams to project. Broz earned second round status with his solid play in the USHL but it took some time to translate up a level to the NCAA. He’s still got a few more levels to go to make it to the NHL and stay there.

Based on his production, including last year as a 21-year old junior, statistical models that track NHL likelihood based on scoring by age at lower levels aren’t impressed.

But after the draft+1 debacle at Minnesota, Broz getting back on track is a win in and of itself.

It also speaks to how crucial Broz’s AHL debut in 2024-25 will be for what it tells us about his long-term future. If Broz, who turns 22 in October, is pedestrian or otherwise unimpressive as a rookie, things won’t be looking that great. It usually doesn’t take scoring and skilled forward prospects particularly long to flash and show they can dictate play in the AHL as a precursor for a successful future — see Conor Sheary scoring 20 goals and 45 points in 58 games in his AHL debut as a 22-year old, or Jake Guentzel’s 20 points in 21 AHL games (playoff and regular season) as a 21-year old.

Broz could have already been written off once but now is carrying a lot of confidence and momentum as he prepares to turn pro. The organization has started bringing in higher draft picks and traded for some young players, which would make a home grown project all the sweeter if it pays off in the future. A highlight like what Broz put out there in Minnesota this week shows he won’t be lacking for skill or confidence as he tries to be that kind of project for the Penguins.