Penguins’ 2017 Draft Class: Where Are They Now?

Though the Penguins relinquished the rights to Lauzon due to the uncertainty surrounding him, they invited him to participate in their development camp in June 2019. Just three months later, it was reported that he was experiencing headaches and dizziness once more. Knowing he needed to do what’s right for his health, he announced his retirement from hockey. Just last season, five years after announcing his retirement from the game, he played one game with the Granby Bisons in the Ligue de Hockey Sénior AAA du Québec.

Clayton Phillips: Round 3, 93rd Overall

Looking for a smooth-skating defenseman who had an offensive mind, the Penguins landed Clayton Phillips in the third round. Throughout high school and his first season in the United States Hockey League with the Fargo Force, he had what the Penguins were looking for. After being drafted by the Penguins, he spent the 2017-18 season playing the first half of the season with the Force and Muskegon Lumberjacks.

Ready to take the next step in his career, Phillips attended the University of Minnesota to begin his collegiate hockey career in the spring semester of 2018. He spent a season and a half with the Golden Gophers from 2018 to 2019. His journey took him to Happy Valley to play for Penn State. After playing parts of three seasons, he signed an amateur tryout contract with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (WBS) in the American Hockey League (AHL). He played just one game to end the 2021-22 season. The 2022-23 season saw Phillips play parts of the season in the ECHL with the Savannah Ghost Pirates and Iowa Heartlanders, where his pro career would end.

Jan Drozg: Round 5, 152nd Overall

A little over two years after being drafted, The Hockey Writers had Jan Drozg as the 11th-ranked Penguins prospect. With a strong shot, he was primed to be a high-point-producing forward at the professional level. Things did not work out that well in North America for him, however. Playing parts of five seasons with WBS and the Grand Rapids Griffins, he scored just 14 goals and 27 points in 103 games.

Things turned around for Drozg over the last three seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Since the 2022-23 season, he has played 112 games for Amur Khabarovsk and 33 games for Kunlun Red Star. It is currently unknown where the 2025-26 season will take Drozg. There has been no announcement of him re-signing with Red Star, though he is still listed on their roster.

Linus Olund: Round 5, 155th Overall

Drafted in the fifth round, Linus Olund was a skilled two-way player who scouts believed could play on both the power play and penalty kill. Playing well in his home country, the Gavle, Sweden native made the transition to play for WBS during the 2018-19 season. He played 61 games, tallying nine assists and 15 points. Unfortunately, that would be the lone season he played as he was loaned back to Sweden to play for Brynas IF in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) for the 2019-20 season. Playing at least a game with Brynas IF senior team since the 2014-15 season, Olund will be entering his 11th season in the SHL with the club.

Antti Palojarvi: Round 6, 186th Overall

Antti Palojarvi’s professional career was short. The 2016-17 season saw him loaned to KeuPa HT in Mestis, where he played just one game. Beginning with the 2018-19 season, he earned more opportunities to play professional hockey in Finland as he spent 16 games with Lukko in the Liiga and seven games with SaPKo in Mestis. His hockey career ultimately came to an end after spending parts of four seasons with five teams. Though he signed with Parru HT for the 2023-24 season, he never played a game and retired after the 2022-23 season.

Will Reilly: Round 7, 217th Overall

Post-collegiate career, Will Reilly has had some success in the AHL and ECHL. He made his WBS debut during the 2020-21 season, where he played 26 games, scoring three goals and six points. Over the next three seasons, he bounced between leagues, appearing in 71 AHL games with WBS, the Tucson Roadrunners, and the Charlotte Checkers, and 58 ECHL games with the Wheeling Nailers and Florida Everblades. After winning the Kelly Cup with the Everblades in the 2023-24 season, he made a move to Czechia to play for Ceske Budejovice HC. As of May, Reilly has not signed on to a team for the 2025-26 season.

Projecting the future of NHL prospects is often unforgiving in such a competitive league. For top-tier prospects, the likelihood that they make an NHL roster is high. Others, such as Lauzon, who had a high potential of making it to the NHL, have unfortunate circumstances forcing them to retire at a young age or hindering them from reaching their potential. As we get closer to looking at more recent draft classes for the Penguins, their scouting department hits the nail on the head on some of the prospects drafted.