Report: Penguins likely out of the race for top prospect

The Penguins are not among the “front runners” to land college free agent defenseman Will Butcher, according to a source of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Butcher won the Hobey Baker Award at the University of Denver and became an unrestricted free agent on Aug. 16 after he failed to sign with the Colorado Avalanche, the team that drafted him in 2013.

The Penguins did originally express interest, but it now it seems as if the Penguins will not make the cut of finalists. It's believed Butcher has nailed down his list of finalists to three or four teams and his decision could take another week. 

It's been a tough offseason for the 2017 Stanley Cup Champions. Marc-Andre Fleury got selected by the Vegas Golden Knights in the expansion draft, while they also lost Nick Bonino, Chris Kunitz, Trevor Daley and Ron Hainsey all to other teams in Free Agency. Matt Cullen is headed back to Minnesota.