Pittsburgh Penguins Ben Kindel (Left) Harrison Brunicke (Right)
NEW YORK — The world’s most famous arena and NHL debuts by a pair of teenagers in the Pittsburgh Penguins lineup.
The Penguins had a night of firsts as they beat the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden, 3-0, before a national TV audience.
While Penguins coach Dan Muse will remember the game as his first win, and goalie Arturs Silovs may remember it for his first NHL (regular season) shutout, the game signified a true sea change regarding the Penguins’ roster and the turn toward youth.
Harrison Brunicke hit the ice a step ahead of Ben Kindel for the customary rookie lap in warmup, and a pair of NHL careers launched. Kindel, the 2025 first-round pick, 11th overall, was a revelation in preseason, showcasing his hockey smarts first in the defensive zone, then quickly gaining the confidence to orchestrate the play in the offensive zone.
Brunicke was oh so close to cracking the Penguins roster out of training camp in 2024 as a second-round pick. However, he stumbled in his final preseason game, and the team returned him to juniors for another year of hockey matriculation.
Kindel would have returned to the WHL again had he not cracked the roster, but it became obvious throughout camp and preseason that Brunicke had no intention of letting the Penguins hand him any ticket except with the team to New York for the regular season.
(OK, the players don’t fly commercial and they don’t need tickets for their chartered flights, but you get the idea.)
It had been 19 years since a pair of teenage Penguins rookies made their NHL debut in the same game. In 2006, it was Jordan Staal and Kris Letang who hit the ice together.
That duo worked out pretty well for the team. Before then, the first time in franchise history that a pair of teenagers made their debuts together was some chap named Mario Lemieux with defenseman Doug Bodger.
Indeed, regardless of the outcome, the rookies were ready for their big moment.
“My parents flew in last night, so it’s really cool that they can come and watch,” Kindel said after the morning skate. “Yeah. It was tough to get to bed (last night). I was kind of thinking about (Tuesday), but yeah. Just really excited.”
“Yeah, a lot of excitement–tough falling asleep last night for sure,” Brunicke admitted in the morning. “But yeah, I’m just looking forward to today. Obviously, it’s a big moment. I’m looking to just get it all in and have some fun with it.”
Game Time
The actual contest was a tale of hope and caution, of possibility and danger.
After Muse took the symbolic step of starting both rookies with the Penguins’ superstars, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang, Kindel and Brunicke took very different paths throughout the game.
Kindel was a bundle of adrenaline and tenacity. He chased down pucks like he needed them. The center distributed pucks to his linemates Philip Tomasino and Tommy Novak for scoring chances and had a few dandy chances that he earned for himself.
He was clearly the Penguins’ best forward in the first period, and probably might have earned that honor over the entirety of the game.
Kindel earned more than 15 minutes of ice time despite a third-line role. He had one shot on goal and won four of five faceoffs. Muse showed trust in his emerging star rookie with regular shifts throughout the third period as the Penguins held a 1-0 lead.
“I was a little bit surprised (to start), to be honest,” Kindel said. “I found out right before the game when they announced the lineup. So, it was a really cool experience to line up with Sid, Geno, and Tanger. I was really grateful for that opportunity to start and win the game.”
While Kindel excelled, Brunicke learned how unforgiving the NHL game can be. He took a tripping penalty at the end of the first shift of the game, which followed full Penguins domination.
Not long afterward, he was caught out of position, giving New York a short breakaway. He committed a couple of turnovers and succumbed to the New York forecheck a few times, giving away possession.
After the shaky first period, Muse sat Brunicke for large parts of the second period before returning him to a regular shift in the third. It mirrored the same gentle message Muse sent to Kindel in the last preseason game after a sloppy turnover.
It also worked.
Brunicke was stable and solid in the third period, even earning shifts with the game at stake in the third period.
Brunicke played 15:21 on Tuesday, registering one shot on goal, two giveaways, and two blocked shots.
“Yeah, a lot of emotions right from the start,” Brunicke said. “It was pretty sweet hearing the crowd, especially in a stadium like this, so yeah, it was awesome–but uh yeah, not a great penalty to start the shift, but it was fun. I enjoyed it a lot.”
There were no iconic moments inside the iconic arena. There were no first NHL goals or moments that will live in Penguins lore. Still, the emergence of Penguins rookies, both teenagers, and their insertion into the Penguins lineup surely felt like a loud declarative statement from Muse and even general manager Kyle Dubas.
The times, they are a-changing. Renewal. Youth stood beside the experience, and problems of the past, such as blown leads or muted effort, were forgotten as the team dominated New York in the third period. No blown leads or shrugs. More symbolic than the start of the game was the finish; a coach not only inserted rookies into the lineup, but also relied upon them.
Just as the organization will do soon enough.
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