TRAVIS HAYES BRINGS FAMILY’S “COMPETE” TO PENGUINS

CRANBERRY, Pa. – Travis Hayes vividly remembers playing mini sticks with his brothers at home when he was growing up. Those core memories formed not only because of the camaraderie he has with his brothers Avery, Gavin and Elijah, but one would have to think that those games were cutthroat, given the way the members of the Hayes family play today.

Avery Hayes has put his relentlessness on display for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins over the past two seasons, and that same tenacity is a large reason why the Pittsburgh Penguins elected to draft Travis in the fourth round of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.

Travis’ selection marked a huge moment not only in his young career, but another feather in the cap of the Hayes family all around.

“It was super exciting getting the call [to get drafted],” Travis said. “It was me, Gavin, Eli, and then my grandma was over and my mom and dad, but Avery was in Peterborough for a reunion. So he wasn’t even there to see me get drafted. But right after I got picked, he gave me a call and told me congrats.”

Travis, the third-born of the four Hayes brothers, donned a Penguins uniform for the first time on Thursday by stepping onto the ice for day one of Pittsburgh’s Development Camp. The day included on and off-ice testing, skating exercises and several small-area drills at the UMPC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry.

During these sessions, Travis displayed many of the attributes that earned him the right to be drafted last week. Coincidentally, many of those skills are shared by his older brother, Avery.

“I think I play more like Avery, I would say,” Travis said after leaving the ice at Development Camp. “The guys I play with who have played with him before say I play like Avery, his feistiness and skill with the puck.”

An Avery Hayes 2.0? That should be sufficient to get fans in Northeast Pennsylvania fired up about the 105th overall pick. It also has Penguins management thrilled, as well.

“The compete is something that seems to be built into that family’s DNA,” said Penguins Director of Player Development Tom Kostopoulos. “I don’t know how many of you were watching [Travis] out there, but I like the competitiveness.

“I think we’re going to get along really well.”

However, Travis cannot join the AHL until the 2027-28 season, when he’ll be 20 years old. For now, Travis is slated to return to the OHL and play for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, where he and his teammates made an unexpected run to the playoffs this past year.

In mid-February, the Greyhounds were near the bottom of the standings and reeling after dropping eight of their last nine games. However, the team turned things around with a 9-4-2 finish that included a five-game win streak, propelling them to an unlikely postseason berth. The spirited conclusion to the season perfectly fit to Hayes’ strengths, and he felt it was a perfectly emblematic conclusion to the year.

“Me being an undersized player, being the underdog, that’s what we were in the Soo this year,” Travis said. “We weren’t expected to make playoffs and climbing up and getting that playoff spot was really rewarding for the group.”

His performance also clearly caught the eye of Kyle Dubas and his scouts. Dubas is never shy about hiding his affections for the Soo and its players, as he grew up around the team and eventually became its general manager in the 2010’s. Travis said that Dubas was quick to greet him and fellow 2025 draft pick Jordan Charron upon their arrival at Development Camp and welcome them to the team.

Continuing to thrive in Sault Ste. Marie is what the near-future holds for Travis Hayes. But draft day gave him and his family a new dream for down the line.

“Hopefully I can be a linemate with Avery someday.”

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