The Pittsburgh Penguins released their Prospects Challenge roster for this weekend’s games in Buffalo on Wednesday.
The roster is headlined by 2025 first-rounder Ben Kindel, 2024 second-rounder Harrison Brunicke, 2022 fourth-rounder Sergei Murashov, 2022 first-rounder Owen Pickering, and 2021 first-rounder Ville Koivunen, who came over in the Jake Guentzel trade and made his NHL debut back in March.
Pickering also made his NHL debut this past season and appeared in 25 games, compiling one goal and three points.
This is an excellent opportunity for each prospect to keep developing since the 2025-26 season is just around the corner. With that in mind, let’s look at four prospects that fans should have their eyes on during these games.
Ben Kindel
Kindel is one of three prospects that the Penguins selected in the first round of the 2025 NHL Draft. He was taken with the 11th overall pick in the draft, and he has a lot of skill. He was one of the best players in the WHL last year, finishing with 35 goals and 99 points in 64 games.
Kindel has a great release and doesn’t need a lot of time to utilize it. He also showed improvement as a playmaker and has a great motor. He can really win the 1v1 battles along the boards and has a strong Hockey IQ.
He isn’t ready for the NHL right now and will go back to the Calgary Hitmen for another season, but this is a perfect chance for him to show that he is arguably the top prospect in the Penguins’ system.
Quinn Beauchesne
Beauchesne was picked in the fifth round of the 2025 NHL Draft by the Penguins and showcased his strong skating ability as a defenseman last season with the Guelph Storm, compiling six goals and 24 points in 49 games. It was his second season with the Storm, and he’ll return to them for a third season this year as an alternate captain.
He appeared at development camp back in July and also showcased his skating ability each day before the scrimmage took place on the final day. He created space each time he had the puck.
The Penguins took four defensemen in the 2025 NHL Draft, and there’s a chance Beauchesne has the highest ceiling of them all if he keeps developing.
Penguins Announce Prospects Challenge Roster, McGroarty Out
On Wednesday, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced their rosters for the 2025 Prospects Challenge in Buffalo, which takes place Sept. 11-15.
Kale Dach
Dach is the perfect under-the-radar player for fans to watch this weekend. He was picked in the seventh round of the 2025 NHL Draft and lit up the BCHL last season, finishing with 22 goals and 87 points in 54 games.
He will take things up a notch this season when he plays for the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen with Ben Kindel. Those two will likely get quite a bit of ice time together this season, and fans could get a glimpse of that over the next few days.
Dach has some raw offensive skill and even got to showcase some of it in the scrimmages during development camp. He had a nasty between-the-legs cross-ice pass for a good scoring chance, but the puck didn’t find the back of the net.
It’s never a bad bet to take a late-round chance on a player who has some good traits.
Sergei Murashov
Murashov is one of two goaltenders who will play with the other Penguins’ prospects, joining Gabriel D’Aigle, who was selected in the third round of this year’s draft. Murashov came over from Russia last year and was too good for the ECHL, finishing the season with a 2.40 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage in 26 games.
He also got time with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and made history by winning his first 10 starts. It’s the longest winning streak in WBS history for a goalie in his rookie season. He finished the year with a 2.64 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage.
The WBS starting goaltender job is wide open for this upcoming season, and he’s going to do everything in his power to win it. He’s not ready for the NHL yet, but his time is coming. The key is to make sure the Penguins don’t rush his development. Murashov’s side-to-side movement is excellent, and he actively challenges shooters at the top of the crease.
We’ll see how many of the three games he starts when the Penguins start playing on Friday, September 12.
Speaking of that, the Penguins will open the Prospects Challenge against the Boston Bruins on Friday at 5:30 p.m. ET before playing the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday, September 14, at 3:30 p.m. ET. They’ll end the challenge against the Buffalo Sabres, who are hosting the tournament, on Monday, September 15, at Noon ET.
All games will be available to watch on the Penguins’ official website.
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