Penguins Team Awards for the 2025-26 Season

The second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs is now in full swing, as is the beginning of yet another uncomfortably long offseason for the Pittsburgh Penguins and their fans. And while falling to its cross-state rival in the first round likely left a bad taste in the organization’s mouth, the team is certainly in a much better spot overall than it was at this time last year.

In a season that began with draft lottery expectations, the Penguins silenced the outside noise and fought their way back into the postseason for the first time since 2022. They even secured home ice to boot. Led by aging talent finding form, new additions seamlessly slotting into the lineup, and even some young guns finding their stride, Pittsburgh’s 2025-26 campaign displayed that it doesn’t need a draft pick as high as Gavin McKenna or Ivar Stenberg to compete for a championship again.

Much of the talent the Penguins need is already in their locker room, but general manager Kyle Dubas will have to make some hard choices this summer on who stays and who goes. For now, let’s take a look back at four Penguins players who were deserving of seasonal awards.

Most Surprising Player: Anthony Mantha

When the Penguins signed Anthony Mantha back on July 2, 2025, it was unclear what kind of role the veteran forward was really going to fit into. The definition of the term “journeyman”, Mantha arrived in Pittsburgh following stints with the Detroit Red Wings, Washington Capitals, Vegas Golden Knights, and Calgary Flames. Up to that point, he’d never logged more than 25 goals or 50 points in a single season in his career. Additionally, Mantha also joined the Penguins coming off a season-ending ACL injury.

But despite all that, Pittsburgh head coach Dan Muse believed Mantha could make his first season in Pittsburgh his best yet. The veteran forward did just that.

“Dan called me over the summer. The first conversation we had was, he wanted to get me to 30 goals. And after it happened, he came up to me, and he’s like, you talked about it the first time! I was like, yeah, we did,” Mantha told Penguins team reporter Michelle Crechiolo.

Surrounded by young and old talent in linemates Evgeni Malkin, Ben Kindel, and Justin Brazeau, Mantha shattered his previous career highs in goals, assists, and points. His 33 regular-season tallies led all Penguins players, which proved pivotal amid the team’s late-season playoff push. Although Mantha recorded just one assist over Pittsburgh’s six-game series against the Philadelphia Flyers, his stellar play throughout the regular season may have been enough to earn him a new contract that keeps him in Pittsburgh.

Most Improved Player: Erik Karlsson

Ahead of the 2025-26 season, it seemed like Dubas’ choice to go all-in on Erik Karlsson when he first took over as GM may have been the wrong one.

Coming off a remarkable 2022-23 campaign that saw the star blueliner reach the 100-point mark and capture the Norris Trophy, Pittsburgh’s coaching staff was hopeful it could help Karlsson maintain that level of play following the trade. However, quite the opposite happened.

Under then-head coach Mike Sullivan’s staff, Karlsson’s game regressed in his first two years in Pittsburgh. Despite playing all 82 of the Penguins’ regular-season games both years, he failed to even come close to the point-per-game mark that he easily surpassed with the San Jose Sharks. To put it simply, the way Karlsson played didn’t fit Sullivan’s system, and neither side was willing to budge for the other.

Then along came Muse, who provided Karlsson with an avenue to start fresh again in Pittsburgh. Alongside newly-acquired defenseman Parker Wotherspoon, Karlsson began to show flashes of Norris Trophy form once again. This was especially true throughout March, when Karlsson helped keep the Penguins safely inside the playoff picture as the team dealt with injuries to other stars.

That's NINE multi-point games in the month of March for Erik Karlsson 🤯

Karlsson is the sixth defenseman in NHL history to record nine multi-point games in a single month, joining Bobby Orr (10 in Dec. 1974 & 9 in March 1973), Cale Makar (9 in Nov. 2023), Paul Coffey (9 in Jan.… pic.twitter.com/Jm3syOQ7gQ

— Penguins PR (@PenguinsPR) March 28, 2026

Karlsson ended the campaign with his most productive stat line yet as a Penguin with 15 goals, 51 assists, and 66 points. His ability to both effectively distribute the puck and wire home shots from the point made him arguably the most important piece of Pittsburgh’s power play, a role he’ll continue to fill in the final year of his contract next season.

“I think it was a collective effort from everybody. With the season that we had, I feel like everybody in here is somewhat satisfied with their own individual performances,” Karlsson said during the Penguins’ end-of-season media session. “As a group I feel like everybody likes each other, everybody gets along, and everybody wants to do well for each other. I think that’s the number one priority to have a good team. I enjoyed myself tremendously this year, and I’m looking forward to moving it forward.”

Most Impressive Young Player: Ben Kindel

The Penguins knew the type of player they were getting when they selected Kindel 11th overall in the 2025 NHL Draft.

Coming off a gold medal win as a member of Team Canada in the IIHF U18 Men’s World Championship followed by a remarkable 99-point season with the Calgary Hitmen (Western Hockey League), the teenage forward joined Pittsburgh with an impressive resume. His play during training camp and the preseason backed up those achievements.

Despite his smaller stature and less physical brand of hockey, Kindel muscled his way into the Penguins’ opening night lineup when they took on the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Kindel even lined up alongside Sidney Crosby and Malkin for the opening draw, becoming the fifth-youngest player to make his NHL debut in a Penguins uniform at 18 years old.

Unlike fellow prospect Harrison Brunicke, Kindel became a mainstay in the Penguins’ lineup, appearing in all but five regular-season contests. As he did his best to pick up pointers from the pool of talent around him, Kindel spent the season switching between center and wing. His hockey IQ and ability to move the puck made up for his lack of physical prowess, but he was also never one to shy away from scraps. Kindel closed his campaign with 35 points and still remained an important presence on the ice, even when it didn’t show on the scoreboard at times.

While Kindel was held pointless during Pittsburgh’s brief playoff run, being placed on the Penguins’ playoff roster at all still gave the up-and-coming forward invaluable experience to take with him going forward.

“I’m still kind of sick to my stomach thinking about that last shift and how the season ended. Obviously, there’s nothing you can do about it now, but I’m just gonna use it as motivation in the future. “(I’m) gonna do whatever I can to not let it end like that again,” Kindel said during the Penguins’ end-of-season media session.

STUART SKINNER WITH A MASSIVE SAVE ❌ pic.twitter.com/Dn2lDp7CCU

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 21, 2026

Although Skinner was arguably the Penguins’ best player in each of their first three games against the Flyers in the first round, his stellar performances were tainted by the team’s play in front of him. Despite recording an .873 save percentage across the first three games of the series, Muse made the bold decision to try and spark his squad by swapping in Šilovs. The Penguins went on to win the next two games as Skinner watched from the bench, but still ultimately dropped the series.

Though Skinner’s play didn’t earn the Penguins any wins in the postseason, his play during the latter stages of the regular season was the main reason they even got there in the first place. Whether the Penguins decide to re-sign him will make all the difference when it comes to finding stability in the net.

Largely thanks to these four players, the 2025-26 Penguins authored a story that delivered hope for the future to an organization that badly needed it. And while it’s unknown if all of them will be back in black and gold next season, their efforts still helped the franchise take a big step in the right direction.