PensBurgh’s 2026 edition of the Top 25 Under 25 countdown continues with collegiate forward Zam Plante. Plante lit up the NCAA last year and stood out as one of the top players at the Penguins’ summer development camp.
Catch up on the previous entries for this year:
Pensburgh Top 25 Under 25: Graduates and Departed players in 2025
Top 25 Under 25: The best of the rest
#25: Chase Pietila, D
#24: Ryan Miller, F
#23: Finn Harding, D
#22: Peyton Kettles, D
#21: Zam Plante, C/F
2025 Ranking: n/a
Age: 21 (August 24, 2004)
Acquired Via: 2022 NHL Draft; 5th Round, No. 150 overall
Height/Weight: 5-foot-9, 172 pounds
Zam Plante took a major
step forward in his sophomore season at Duluth, ending up tied for sixth in scoring in the whole NCAA with 50 points in 40 games.
He’s a weapon at that level, with hands and scoring ability that leap out at you.
He has a style all his own, we have to agree with Jesse here that there are unique items about Plante. In a way, there’s a Phil Kessel vibe about him where if he isolate on Plante at time she looks disengaged, oddly scooting around the ice or even outright stationary without the puck. Then, when it’s time to go, well he really goes and has an ability to flip a switch and make a play. In a sense, while appearances may suggest one thing, he’s also incredibly effective at playing to his strengths and minimizing the limitations of his size. He doesn’t share Kessel’s absolutely dynamic speed but there’s that certain informality to his body language just the same.
Another issue, talked about this summer, is Zam’s future plans. He did most of his damage last year with Duluth came from playing with brother Max – the Hobey Baker winner. Max was drafted by Detroit in the second round in 2024. The Red Wings upped the ante by selecting the youngest Plante brother Victor in the second round this year. (Victor will head to Duluth to join his brothers for 2026-27). The Red Wing pair are already dreaming out loud about Zam joining them in Detroit once his Pittsburgh draft rights expire in 2028. Whether or not that will happen is anyone’s guess, what isn’t a guess is how effective the Zam+Max combination was last season.
Zam continued his hot run of play by standing out as the best player on the ice at 2026 Penguin development camp.
The event Kostopolous was talking about was a 3v3 competition, which it should be noted there might not be a style of hockey where Zam is ever going to look better than playing against non-professionals in the summer with only three defenders on the ice and a ton of open space to manipulate. It was action he was tailor made to dominate, and dominate he did.
Beyond possible signability concerns, how much of Plante’s game will translate to the pros is a factor why he’s still slotting in relatively low on our countdown this year. There’s no denying the skill and ability, there’s always a question about whether a smallish scorer who isn’t known for overall pace in game and forechecking is going to end up more as a Justin Almeida (a leading WHL scorer in his day and former Penguin fifth round pick that tapped out as very good ECHL player) or, say, Jake Guentzel. Plante’s path is likely to be somewhere in between but the onus for this sort of player can always be one to see before there’s belief. He’ll also be a 22-year old college junior in the upcoming season, the clock is starting to tick for a player drafted back in 2022. 2026-27 will be a huge year, he is in-line to have another great season for Duluth, but then will he forgo his senior year and turn pro with the Pens? Every upcoming season can rightly be held up as a big one for any prospect but Plante will be coming to a major career crossroads by March of next year that could either formally bring him into the organization or signal that he will never be a part of it.
