Promising Start For Top Pick

The Pittsburgh Penguins may have dropped their second consecutive preseason context, but the game results matter a lot less than the process.

There were still positives to be had in the loss and they involved some of the younger players.

First rounder making progress

Let’s start with who I consider the most notable among players in the lineup last night, Ben Kindel. The 11th overall pick continues to progress in the right direction with each passing game he has dressed for. This might have been his best outing to date. He was able to flash some good speed and was strong on the puck. His ice time was predominately against NHL players with Dante Fabbro, Boone Jenner, Adam Fantilli, Zach Werenski, and Kent Johnston leading the way in minutes against Kindel, per Natural Stat Trick. Overall, Kindel finished the night as an 82.95 xGF% player at 5v5. He had this to say about the NHL competition

“It’s pretty crazy,” Kindel told me of the experience. “Going as an 18-year-old and playing like against some of those All-Star players? It was a great experience. And obviously they’re very good players, so you’ve got to work extra hard and compete extra hard against them.”

He was able to use his speed to draw a tripping penalty and he also earned himself a breakaway on a different sequence. Coach Muse also was using him on the penalty kill where he was able to generate some offensive chances. His head coach had this to say about him

“Just his awareness on the ice, he’s one of those players where at times, the game looks easy to him, just because he puts himself in such good positions,” Muse said. “When you watch him, the way he positions himself, the way he can change speed – you combine that with that sense to put himself in those great spots, then with the stick skills and just the overall abilities. You saw that at the rookie tournament, and I think you’ve seen it here in practices, and that’s not an easy thing for a young player like that.”

Kindel outlook

I am encouraged by the way Kindel has looked so far and I hope they keep dressing him in these preseason games. I still don’t think it will result in making the big club for the 2025-26 season and that is OK. The early returns are what they need to be in order to be hopeful for the coming years. Sometimes you don’t know how an undersized skill player will adapt to playing against professionals and I think Kindel has shown the foundation of a player who can make the jump and continue to progress as he adds strength and experience. Who knows, maybe we get a nine game tryout situation for him.

Goaltending debut

Arturs Silovs first action as a Penguins went fine. He stopped 12 out of 14 shots and spent a good chunk of his time with the team on the penalty kill. Three of those penalty kills he was able to fend off. The first goal he allowed was a clean unscreened shot from the left circle. A decent shot, but ultimately one an NHL goalie should have. The second one was through a screen on the power play, a lot tougher to track and make the save on.

Coach Muse had this to say

“It was good,” Muse said. “There was some big saves in there, some plays in the slot there that we’d like to prevent from happening but he was there when they did.”

There really wasn’t a lot to say in the limited action. We are going to have to keep getting samples of Silovs playing against NHL competition before we know exactly where he will fit on the depth chart. It is boring to say, but the first outing was indeed, fine.

The team will pick up preseason game action on Friday night when they host the Detroit Red Wings