Penguins First Rounder Zonnon Begins Climb; Swagger, But ‘Very Far Away’?

CRANBERRY — P.K. Subban was flattered on draft night when Pittsburgh Penguins first-round pick Bill Zonnon credited Subban for drawing him into hockey.

Subban has become something of a mentor to Zonnon, whose parents are from Togo but relocated to Montreal for schooling. Zonnon certainly didn’t come from a hockey background like fellow 2025 first-round pick Will Horcoff whose father played in the NHL for 18 seasons. Instead, Zonnon came to it organically when he saw Subban.

The Penguins’ draftee spoke of idolizing Subban after he was drafted, and Subban responded in kind–posting on social media that knowing that Zonnon and other kids who came to the game because of him was a “feeling better than winning the Stanley Cup.”

Seeing Subban in a Montreal Canadiens jersey was all it took, and Zonnon wanted to be a hockey player.

“I talked to him before getting drafted in LA. He was there, I met him at the hotel on the way to the draft,” said Zonnon. “It was nice to meet him, and he’s always there for me to reach out to whenever I need. He’s a great mentor for me.”

Buried amidst the high-profile prospects, Zonnon and scouts have described him as a horse. He’s strong on his skates and the puck and converts on his chances, too. In 64 games with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, he netted 28 goals with 83 points. Checking in at somewhere around 6-foot-2, 192 pounds, Zonnon will only get bigger as he approaches professional hockey.

And that’s when the prospect’s humility collided with confidence, when he defined having the necessary swagger to play at the highest levels.

“It’s just confidence. You don’t really need to show it or talk about it, but once I step on the ice, that’s when I really feel confident,” Zonnon said. “That’s when I really let my confidence show–not really off the ice. On the ice, I’m a confident player. I work pretty hard on my craft, so why not have some swagger on the ice?”

No, Zonnon’s voice didn’t imitate former coach Mike Sullivan’s when use used that word “Swagger,” but the word surely has echoed off the walls of the UPMC Lemieux Complex.

However, when PHN asked how close Zonnon felt he was to the NHL, he backpedaled faster than a defenseman facing a Connor McDavid rush. He did so a little bit to avoid sounding brash–something Subban surely didn’t teach him–but also in a nod to the realities that he and the other draftees face.

“Very far away. Very far away,” Zonnon said with a reserved smile. “I’ve got a long way to go, and I’m going to put in the work. Now that I’m drafted, I have more resources than I’ve had before. I know one day … my goal is to play in the NHL.”

It’s PHN’s view that Zonnon could well be one of the surprises of training camp, but that’s a few months away.

Zonnon is probably much closer to the big show than he lets on. He’s already got enough size, speed, and perhaps as important as the other two, strength. Given his September birthdate, Zonnon will be able to turn pro for next season, which means he will be beating a path to Pittsburgh sooner rather than later–in fact, he will be able to turn pro with 2024 second-round pick Harrison Brunicke (unless Brunicke makes the NHL roster this season).