Brayden Yager’s first taste of the National Hockey League was everything he had hoped.
“I had a ton of fun, on the ice, with our workouts and fitness testing, it was awesome,” Yager said.
The Moose Jaw Warriors forward took part in his first Development Camp with the Pittsburgh Penguins earlier this month after being selected by the team with the 14th overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.
Yager said going from the draft straight to Pittsburgh for his first NHL camp was a whirlwind.
“It was super special,” he said. “[The draft] was a day that I’ve been dreaming of since I was a little kid and super happy to do it with my family there.
“[Then my first camp] was obviously really cool, I got to meet a lot of new people and Owen Pickering is drafted there, he showed me around there, took me under his wing for the camp, and introduced me to everybody.”
Yager wasn’t the only Warrior hitting the ice in Pittsburgh as he was joined by teammate Atley Calvert, who was attending his first camp with the Penguins.
The Moose Jaw product had previously had the chance to suit up with the Buffalo Sabres at their training camp last fall.
“It was a short camp, only three days long, but I learned a lot and took a lot from it,” he said.
Coming off a 40-goal season with the Warriors, Calvert was hoping to impress the Penguins heading into his 20-year-old season.
“I had a pretty good camp and pretty good showing, even though it was only three skates, but the three-on-three tournament at the end, definitely helped for sure,” he said.
During the tournament, Yager finished three goals and an assist as he put together a strong performance in his first weekend as a Penguins prospect.
“It was fun, obviously playing with some pretty good players,” Yager said. “It was super competitive, that was the most important part, just competing with those guys.”
Yager added that getting to share the experience with Calvert made it an even better experience.
“It was really cool,” he said. “I saw him score a goal and it was just fun hanging out with him, going out for dinner and just going through it with a teammate is pretty special.”
Calvert said he had already settled on attending Penguins’ Development Camp when Yager was picked in the first round and said that added to the weekend.
“I was pretty excited to go with Yager and share that experience for sure,” he said.
Calvert will be returning to training camp with the Penguins. He said he’s going to be focused on getting bigger, stronger and faster.
“Have a good summer and then come ready for another shot at training camp,” he said.
Now with Development Camp in the rearview mirror, Yager’s focus is on taking what he learned from the experience and using it to have a strong rest of the summer.
“Development camp was an eye opener,” Yager said. “They show you what’s expected of you when you’re a Penguin and I want to do everything I can to be a Penguin one day, so I’m going to put in the work.
“It’s kind of cliche, but the work starts now.”