Yesterday, development camp for the Pittsburgh Penguins wrapped up with the highly-anticipated prospect tournament.

The event featured a round-robin tournament which consisting of three teams: Team Barrasso (wearing yellow), Team Rutherford (wearing white), and Team Murphy (wearing black). It culminated in a 4-3 win for Team Barrasso over Team Rutherford in the final.

You can read the Fifth Avenue Sports coverage of the tournament and final game from yesterday here. Today, it’s time to present the awards for the tournament. Six players are going home with the coveted prize of being highly thought of by one guy with a website. It was by far the biggest thing at stake Friday.

Tournament MVP: Zam Plante

I know that it’s perhaps a little taboo to give the Most Valuable Player award to a player who lost the final, but to me there’s really no question as to who this award belongs to.

The captain of the Rutherford team was nothing short of amazing in this tournament, flying up and down the ice nearly every chance he got. He was exceptionally skilled with the puck on his stick, generating a handful of scoring chances in each game the white jerseys played and putting on a show with one of the most beautiful spin-o-rama passes you will ever see.

In the final against the Barrasson squad, Plante nearly willed his Rutherford group to a win, contributing to the team’s opening goal and had some great chemistry with several of his teammates.

The 21-year-old is coming off a 40-game college season for the University of Minnesota-Duluth this past season, where he scored 20 goals and added 30 assists. We can debate how much development camp can boost a prospect’s stock, but it’s safe to say Plante’s hit that ceiling.

But don’t just take my word for it, hear it from Tom Kostopoulos, Director of Player Development for the Penguins.

“I thought he stood out probably more than anyone today, with just his creativity, his hockey sense,” Kostopoulos said. “And then he can finish, he can make plays.”

Best Free Agent Invitee: Jack Horbach

One of the teammates Plante had real chemistry with was Jack Horbach, who wins the award for Best Free Agent Invitee.

Horbach was one of almost 20 invitees to development camp who had no previous affiliation to the Penguins. As one of the oldest players at camp as a 24-year-old, Horbach is looking to become a late bloomer as he turns his career pro.

When you take a look at his college stats, nothing really jumps off the page. Only once did he record double-digit points, back when he scored six goals and eight assists (14 points) in a 38-game sophomore season. Last season he wrapped up his fourth season at the University of Wisconsin, where he scored just three goals and five assists (eight points).

But he had some real flashes on Friday. In Rutherford’s first game, Horbach scored shortly after his team pulled their goalie to tie the game, and shortly after his teammate Plante would dangle his way to a game-winner. Plante found Horbach several others times as well, as the latter had a knack for being in the right place at the right time. There was a lot to like from him.

Horbach signed an American Hockey League deal with Pittsburgh’s affiliate, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, back in April.

Best Of The 2026 Class: Pierce Mbuyi

When it came to this year’s development camp, all eyes were on the Ruck twins, Liam and Marcus. They were a package duo at the draft last week and represented two top-40 picks added to Pittsburgh’s deepening prospect pool.

While they both had their moments during the tournament, the 2026 draft pick who stood out the most was Pierce Mbuyi. He was electric on Friday, showcasing sensational speed, slick passing, and a flashy shot as he helped Rutherford get to the final.

An alternate captain with the Owen Sound Attack of the OHL, the Penguins took Mbuyi in the third round last week. Described as a “fierce forechecker” in scouting reports, he certainly lived up to that reputation in this tournament.

Unknown Name To Watch: Maleek McGowan

Sort of like Horbach, another mostly unknown invitee to development camp was the defenseman McGowan.

The 21-year-old is coming off of his third full season in junior, playing for the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League. Last season was the blue liner’s best, where in 62 games he scored 14 goals and 22 assists (36 points) while serving as an alternate captain.

His playing style was most of what stood out to me. McGowan had this smooth, almost relaxed skating style some of the time he was on the ice, but he knew how to turn the jets on when he needed to. McGowan was the kind of player who you didn’t really notice until bam, he’s right there and he has a scoring chance.

He had some good looks at the next during this tournament and was snakebitten at times when it came to goals. But I think he’s a really interesting name to keep an eye on, and the Penguins can do just that. He signed an AHL deal with the WBS Penguins back in April.

Best-Second Year Camp Player: Ryan Miller

The 2025 draft class was well represented at this year’s development camp. Eleven members of last year’s draft class were on the roster for the Penguins this summer, and all but Will Horcoff took to the ice on Friday.

As you can tell from reading the rest of this list so far, not a ton of second-year camp players stood out to me all that much, but I did think Ryan Miller had a strong day for Murphy.

Miller, a fifth-round pick last year, played 65 games for the Portland Winterhawks last season in the Western Hockey League, where he scored 30 goals and added 45 assists (75 points). He appeared in a pair of AHL games last season for the WBS Penguins as well.

The captain of the Winterhawks and of the Murphy team, Miller unfortunately didn’t get an opportunity to play past the two games the black jerseys played in the tournament. But he had some really good looks and is a fun skater to watch on the ice.

Player I Wanted To See More Of: Dakoda Rhéaume-Mullen

One of the names that really interested me coming into this tournament was Rhéaume-Mullen. The defenseman comes from a rich lineage of hockey, including being the son of Manon Rhéaume, the first (and to date, only) woman ever to play in the NHL.

Rhéaume-Mullen, meanwhile, is now trying to establish himself as a potential NHLer. He spent last year at development camp with the Buffalo Sabres before spending a season at the University of Michigan, where he tallied four goals and added 14 assists (18 points) in 40 games for the Wolverines.

He was also teammates with last year’s 24th overall pick and current Penguins prospect Will Horcoff. It’s unfortunate that Horcoff missed this tournament with injury, it would have been fun to see them face each other.

Rhéaume-Mullen was a fun player to watch in this tournament. Although in 3-on-3 play you expect your defenseman to join the offense more, Rhéaume-Mullen showed no hesitation to jump into play when he had the chance.

He’s a two-time undrafted player, but in the modern league he still has a path to maybe see NHL ice one day. I enjoyed watching him, and I wouldn’t mind if the Penguins kept him around in some capacity to keep an eye on him further.