Penguins draft pick Chase Pietila finding identity as defenseman while brother, Logan, chases role at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton

Chase Pietila doesn’t much recognize the player he was a year or two ago, when he didn’t hear his name called at the NHL Draft.

But at the end of June, the 20-year-old defenseman was picked in the fourth round (No. 111 overall) by the Pittsburgh Penguins.

For Pietila, taking the past few years to emphasize fundamentals as opposed to flash made a difference.

“I feel like I developed my play style a little bit more, kind of switched it up a bit,” he said. “I used to be more trying to be a skill offensive guy, and then I realized that’s not my game. As the game gets faster, I grew out of that and developed my game to (bring) more of a defensive aspect to it and just grow that side of my game. That was able to work for me.”

Pietila, a 6-foot-2, 186-pound right-handed shot, recently partook in the Penguins’ annual development camp, where he looked to make an impression on the organization.

“A two-way defenseman that plays hard defense with some tenacity and some grit, likes to stir the pot a little bit,” he said. “… Just a hard-nosed player.

“Maybe I was a late bloomer, but I deserve to be here.”

An alumus of the Youngstown Phantoms of the United States Hockey League, Pietila is now a soon-to-be sophomore at Michigan Tech, where he burst onto the scene as a freshman. He appeared in all 40 games while contributing three goals and 19 assists.

“The opportunities they gave me, I was able to step into a big role, play a lot of minutes, get a lot of ice time and develop my game, just be able to work on everything, see what works in games and sporulate them from practicing to games,” he said.

Making the experience of development camp all the more exciting was Pietila’s older brother, Logan, also being present.

Logan Pietila, a 24-year-old forward, was signed by the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in April, appearing in three games as well as the club’s two Calder Cup playoffs contests.

Sharing the ice is nothing new for the Pietila brothers, who played together collegiately last season in Chase’s freshman and Logan’s senior year.

The elder Pietila served as captain of the Huskies, scoring 13 goals with 16 assists in 40 games.

“It’s awesome,” Logan Pietila said. “Any time you get to play with your brothers — and especially on a bigger stage like this or even in college together — it’s pretty surreal. Definitely happy for him to be selected by the Penguins, and it (was) just awesome being here together, rooming together.”

While Chase looks to continue improving at Michigan Tech, Logan soon will get to work with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

That will entail playing under new coach Kirk MacDonald, who was hired shortly before the draft in mid-June.

Logan Pietila had good things to say about the group he joined in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last spring, with many players in the locker room welcoming him into the fold and offering a helping hand wherever needed.

What the exact composition of the Penguins’ AHL affiliate will look like remains to be seen, but Pietila, signed through 2024-25, will be a puzzle piece.

The next order of business for the 5-foot-11, 185-pound winger will be continuing to acclimate to professional hockey while doing his best to get in position for a potential call-up to Pittsburgh.

“Just have to really focus on being a steady, two-way centerman or forward in general,” he said. “Keep it simple, not trying to be too crazy, just play a really sound game and take everything day by day.

“I think I take pride in both ends of the ice. Obviously, I love scoring goals and making plays, but I also take pride in defending and putting in that extra work down low and helping the (defensemen) break out.”