Ben Kindel

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Ben Kindel
Born (2007-04-19) April 19, 2007 (age 19)
Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 182 lb (83 kg; 13 st 0 lb)
Position Right wing
Shoots Right
NHL team Pittsburgh Penguins
NHL draft 11th overall, 2025
Pittsburgh Penguins
Playing career 2025–present

Benjamin Kindel (born April 19, 2007) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward. He currently plays for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League. A product of the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League (WHL), he was drafted by the Penguins in the 2025 NHL entry draft.

Early life

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Kindel was born on April 19, 2007, in Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada,[1] to parents Steve Kindel and Sara Maglio. Both of his parents played professional soccer; his father Steve played for the Vancouver Whitecaps of the A-League and the Canadian national team, while his mother played for the Vancouver Whitecaps women's team and the Canadian national team. As such, he played both soccer and ice hockey until his teenage years.[2] Due to his father's influence, he grew up a fan of the Montreal Canadiens and admired Brendan Gallagher.[3]

Playing career

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Juniors

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Growing up in British Columbia, Kindel played for the Burnaby Winter Club U15 team from 2020 to 2022.[1] He missed the first half of the 2021–22 season due to a broken hand, but was noticed by Garry Davidson, general manager of the Calgary Hitmen, at the John Reid Memorial Tournament.[4] After being drafted by the Hitmen in the second round of the 2022 Western Hockey League (WHL) Prospects Draft, Kindel played one season with the Yale U18 prep team. He scored 17 goals and 29 assists through 29 games with the team.[5] Kindel made the Hitmen's opening lineup for the 2023–24 season at the age of 16 after a strong performance in training camp and the preseason.[6] He was named the WHL's Rookie of the Week for the week ending November 12, 2023, after scoring six points in two games.[7] By January, Kindel was tied for fourth in rookie scoring with 31 points.[6] He was named the Hitmen's Rookie of the Year after finishing his rookie season with 15 goals and a team-leading 45 assists.[8]

Kindel greatly improved upon his rookie season upon returning to the Hitmen for the 2024–25 season.[1] He began the season with four goals and seven assists through nine games and was selected for the 2024 CHL USA Prospects Challenge.[9] By November, Kindel led the team with nine goals and 19 points through 15 games.[10] He also gained attention from National Hockey League (NHL) scouts and was ranked in the top 20 of all North American skaters by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau in their mid-term report.[11] On January 8, Kindel set a new franchise record for longest point streak by a Hitmen player.[12] He finished the regular season as the Hitmen's scoring leader with 35 goals and 64 assists. He was also named to the Eastern Conference First All-Star Team with linemate Oliver Tulk.[13]

Upon completing his sophomore season, Kindel was drafted in the first round, 11th overall, by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2025 NHL entry draft.[14] He signed a three-year entry-level contract with the team on July 8. As he was the Penguins' top pick of the draft, he was eligible to play in the NHL that season.[15]

Professional

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Kindel became the fifth-youngest player in franchise history to make his NHL debut after playing his first game on October 7, 2025, against the New York Rangers.[16] He scored his first career NHL goal on October 11 against the Rangers.[17] On November 3, Kindel recorded his first multi-goal NHL game, scoring two goals in a 4–3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. By the end of his twelfth professional game, he had already recorded five goals.[18]

International play

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After completing his rookie season with the Calgary Hitmen, Kindel was named to Canada national under-18 team for the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.[19] He helped Team Canada clinch a gold medal for the third consecutive year.[20] Kindel was also selected to represent Team Canada at the 2025 IIHF World U18 Championships after the Hitmen were eliminated from the 2025 WHL playoffs.[21]

Personal life

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Kindel is of Italian descent.[3]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; 
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2022–23 Calgary Hitmen WHL
 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2023–24 Calgary Hitmen WHL
 68 15 45 60 14 — — — — —
2024–25 Calgary Hitmen WHL
 65 35 64 99 39 11 8 7 15 8
WHL totals 134 50 109 159 53 11 8 7 15 8

International

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Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; 
Regular season
Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2024 Canada HG18 1st place, gold medalist(s)
 5 1 1 2 0
2025 Canada U18 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)
 5 1 6 7 2
Junior totals 5 2 7 9 2

References

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