CRANBERRY TWP., Pa. - Ben Kindel was back on the ice Tuesday, a little more than two weeks after the frightening scene aboard the Penguins’ team plane on the way home from Salt Lake City.
Kindel, 19, practiced in a regular sweater, though he was part of the smaller group working on Rink 2 as Pittsburgh once again split players between the two rinks at the UPMC Lemieux Complex for drills and skills work. He had been sidelined since suffering what general manager Kyle Dubas called a vasovagal episode shortly after takeoff on the charter flight home from a four-game trip that ended with Pittsburgh going 0-for-4 through Chicago, Colorado, Vegas, and Utah.
Kindel briefly lost consciousness, was treated by team physician Dr. Vyas, and the plane turned around before he was taken to the University of Utah Medical Center.
He returned home two days later.
The good news is that the episode appears to have been more alarming than severe. Kindel has four points (2-2-4) in nine games this season.
Tuesday’s practice also included a few other notable sweater changes. Justin Brazeau, who had been in a full-contact sweater during Sunday’s limited practice, was in a green jersey. Rutger McGroarty and Avery Hayes were also in green.
Defenseman Sam Girard was back on the ice again as well, wearing a white sweater, which is traditionally used for non-contact.
Update 1: Egor Chinakhov, who had been listed as day-to-day, also returned to practice in a full-contact sweater.
Before the session began, the Penguins announced that Elmer Soderblom was out Tuesday with an upper-body injury. The 6-foot-8 winger is day-to-day. Soderblom, 25, has bounced in and out of the lineup this season as a healthy scratch and has appeared in six of the Penguins’ 12 games, picking up one assist.
Pittsburgh Hockey Now will update the story following practice, when coach Dan Muse addresses the media.
In Other News...
Penguins Injury Crunch Just Opened A Needed Window
Multiple injuries have left the Penguins with a little breathing room this week, at least in terms of the schedule. With a few days off before their next game and only two contests later in the week, the pause comes at a time when the roster could use it, giving the team a chance to reset while it waits for bodies to get healthier and for a few possible reinforcements to become available when play resumes.
One of the more interesting sidelined-storylines is on the back end, where Chase Pietila is still waiting for his NHL debut. Up front, Rickard Rakell at least gave the Penguins something encouraging to hang onto after turning in his best game of the season, a reminder that even in a stretch defined by injuries, there can be pockets of momentum worth watching when the lineup starts to take shape again. [Read more 🡒]
Penguins Early Slide Has Put Dubas In A Tough Spot
The early-season drift has already put Kyle Dubas in a tricky position, because the Penguins are once again facing the same uncomfortable question that follows any slow start: stick with the veteran core and hope it steadies the room, or start looking at the market before the rest of the league decides the teams path for them. Jim Biringer of NHL Rumors.com said on TSN Radio that if the slide keeps going, Pittsburgh could move from patience to a more obvious sell-off, even if the names at the very top of the roster remain off the table.
Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang are still expected to stay put, but the conversation gets more complicated from there. Biringer pointed to a possible retool and a push to get younger after last seasons overachievement, and that naturally puts attention on players who could bring back future pieces if the Penguins decide to listen. Erik Karlsson has been mentioned in that mix, along with Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell, which is the sort of buzz that tends to hang around a team only when the standings start to tighten and the front office has to think beyond the next week. [Read more 🡒]
Penguins Latest Malkin Line Test Says A Lot About Their Young Forwards
Early in the 2026-27 season, Dan Muse is already leaning on the kind of lineup tinkering that usually tells you more about the roster than the playbook. Injuries and uneven performances have forced the Penguins coach to keep searching for the right fit, and one recent look put Ben Kindel between Egor Chinakhov and Evgeni Malkin, a combination with some history and not much reason for comfort after last seasons limited results.
That kind of trial also says plenty about where the young forwards stand in the pecking order. Hendrix Lapierre has looked more natural at center and has clicked well with Ville Koivunen, while Andrei Kuzmenko has not produced the same kind of effectiveness so far, leaving Muse with a clear set of choices and an unresolved question about which young pieces can actually drive a line when the games start to matter more. [Read more 🡒]