Penguins Love Liam Ruck's Talent, Enthusiasm and Smarts

Shortly after being drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins with the 22^nd overall pick in the 2026 Upper Deck NHL Draft, Liam Ruck received a phone call from President of Hockey Operations and GM Kyle Dubas welcoming him into the organization.

"Really appreciate you guys taking a chance on me," Liam told Dubas. "You guys did your part, and now my work starts, and I gotta do what I can to make that roster."

Over the course of the season, Liam got to speak with Dan McLean, one of Pittsburgh’s amateur scouts, and started to believe at the Draft Combine back in June that there was a serious chance he would end up a Penguin come the draft.

“Honestly, throughout the year, I felt they were the most interested team,” Ruck said. “Seeing them being able to grab me, that's pretty special. It means they wanted me throughout the year, and for them to grab me, it's a special moment for me and my family.”

As Liam’s name was announced on the big stage, he got up and shared a special moment with his twin brother, Markus, who is also eligible to be drafted this year.

“Love you, brother,” said Markus as the two were hugging each other.

“I think it’s a special bond that we got, and I’m just going to be just as happy to see him get drafted because we’ve been through everything together,” Liam said. “It was a special hug.”

Leading all rookies in goals (25) en route to winning the WHL Championship season back in 2024-25 for Medicine Hat, Ruck played alongside Gavin McKenna, selected with the No.1 overall pick by the Maple Leafs. The former teammates ran into each other and congratulated one another on this life-changing night.

With McKenna going to the NCAA this past year, both Liam and Markus were given heavier minutes and became the offensive catalysts for the Tigers.

“Yeah, that was a big part of it, getting more opportunity. I think we knew as 16-year-olds, Markus and I, that we just needed a little more opportunity to kind of make some noise in the league,” Ruck said. “It worked out for both sides, and pretty happy that we had some extra opportunity.”

This past season with the Medicine Hat Tigers, Ruck, 18, finished second in the entire WHL in scoring with 104 points (45G-59A) in 68 games, only trailing Markus, who led the league with 108 points. Both Liam and Markus were named to the WHL (East) First All-Star Team.

The ties to Medicine Hat were all around Liam as he walked the KeyBank Center in his new black and gold jersey. Hockey Hall of Famer Lanny McDonald stopped Ruck and congratulated him on this moment. For Ruck, the smiles never left his face; his pure enthusiasm is what stood out to Dubas and Wes Clark all throughout the year.

“It's not just the talent,” Dubas said. “It’s the talent plus the enthusiasm and the intelligence and how much he loves playing and contributing to a contending team and playing well in the playoffs for them. So, it was a number of different things that just made him what we felt was a great fit as a Pittsburgh Penguin.”

In the playoffs for Medicine Hat this year, the 6-foot, 174-pound forward continued to be a factor in all areas with 12 points (8G-4A) in 14 games while also serving on the team’s penalty kill. While the Tigers were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Finals, Ruck showed why he was a first-round talent with his hockey IQ and smooth hands.

“I think I'm pretty good with kind of getting into those holes to get into a scoring area, and when you're playing with good playmakers, they're going to find you, and I think I found that,” Ruck said. “I don't think my shot is the (hardest)  yet, but I think it's knowing that it's something I can work on, and once it gets a little harder, I think it'll be even more deadly.”

Liam and Markus will return to Medicine Hat for one more season, as they have already committed to the NCAA and to joining North Dakota for the 2027-28 season. When asked what made him choose the collegiate route for his development, Ruck didn’t hold back.

“North Dakota just felt like home for Markus and me,” Ruck said. “Going to college, I think it was just, for us, less games. We need to be guys who are in the gym a lot more often --that's one of our biggest things we need to work on. Getting that opportunity to spend some more time on the off-ice stuff out of college is something we need, and we're excited about that.”

Dubas reiterated that notion to the media when talking about the next steps for Liam and his development.  With the Prospect Development Camp taking place in just a few days, Ruck and the other newly drafted prospects will train extensively to build even more muscle and power.

“I want to be a little more explosive with my skating,” Ruck said. “For me, just the off-ice stuff is more important than the on-ice stuff right now. I think knowing that it’s important, and getting the chance to work with staff in Pittsburgh, I think it's going to be a good fit.”

With Liam now a member of the Penguins, and with Markus not being selected on Day 1, the question arises whether he could be selected with Pittsburgh’s 39th-overall pick on Saturday.

"I think at the Combine they said they'd spent four nights apart total in their whole lives,” Dubas said. “So, I think that would make sense, if that's the way that the board falls tomorrow."

With Liam serving as more of the goal scorer compared to Markus as more of the playmaker, it is undeniably true that the identical twins have immense chemistry with each other on the ice and continuously find ways to push one another.

So, whether or not Markus joins the Penguins organization on Day 2, going through this journey to the NHL together has meant the world to Liam and is something he will never forget.

“We go through everything together, and I hope his name's called soon, because he deserves it. I get to compete with that guy every day, and we got a special bond. If he's taken by the Penguins or another organization, I'm proud of him either way.”

Liam was at a loss for words when he realized he would now be on the same team as Sidney Crosby, one of the players he idolized growing up. While the 2026 first-round pick has yet to even see the city, Ruck is ready to be one of the next young talents that come through this organization.

“It's a bright future in Pittsburgh,” Ruck said. “Obviously, a lot of great history there, and seeing that they're coming up again with a bunch of young guys, it's special to join that, and I'm super excited about it.”