What’s the next step for the Penguins?
ELMONT, NEW YORK - MARCH 30: General Manager Kyle Dubas of the Pittsburgh Penguins arrive for the game against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on March 30, 2026 in Elmont, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) | Getty Images The 2025-26 season is officially in the books for the Pittsburgh Penguins, and it was mostly an unexpected success in a couple of different ways. On a team level, they exceeded every possible expectation anybody had for them in the preseason and snapped the franchise’s three-year playoff drought.
The postseason run was brief and ended with disappointment, but even then they made it interesting and brought some unexpected drama to it. On an individual level, some long-term pieces emerged in some unexpected ways. Ben Kindel, the No.
11 overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, arrived far sooner than expected and not only looked like an NHLer right away, but also perhaps a key long-term building block. I am still not sure what his actual upside is, but an 18-year-old that plays over 80 games (including playoffs) in the NHL and scores 17 goals while mostly driving possession and playing an advanced two-way game for his age is a good starting point for a promising career. Maybe even a great career?
Egor Chinakhov arrived in a mid-season trade from the Columbus Blue Jackets and immediately started to reach the potential Columbus had hoped he could. Maybe he has a future here. Elmer Soderblom arrived at the trade deadline and did kind of the same thing, only on a smaller level.
I don’t know that he has a top-six future in Pittsburgh, but he might have some sort of role. Sergei Murashov and Harrison Brunicke did not get a full season in Pittsburgh, but they each had a cup of coffee and flashed the big-time potential the Penguins want to see from them. Now as the Penguins head into the offseason they have to continue building on a lot of that.
Continue to the original source for the full article.