Dubas said that from the beginning of last season, Vice President of Player Personnel Wes Clark and his team had a lot of faith in Kindel. They felt strongly about taking Kindel where they did, even though many hadn’t projected him to go there.
“We had intel that he wasn’t going to go much further beyond [our pick]. And we just didn’t want to look back on it and say, ‘Geez, why did we pass on this guy that had 99 points (with the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League) and then stepped up his game in the playoffs?’” Dubas said. “It has all the makings of one of these prototypical ones that we were going to kick ourselves about.
“Wes was certain about it for months that Ben should be in that mix and be a great pick. And he has great belief in him, and from what I’ve watched on tape and live, I see exactly what Wes is talking about.”
What stood out is Kindel’s intelligence and hockey sense.
“Understands the game at a super high level and he influences the game on both sides of the puck,” Clark said. “We think the upside is sky-high and we’ll do our best to help him improve in the areas he needs to improve in and see where it goes.”
Clark, Dubas and their crew liked what they saw, and now, so has Muse and his staff.
“Every rep you get just helps build confidence, put another brick down each day,” Kindel said. “So, every chance I get, I think it really helps me, and I’m grateful for the opportunities I’ve been getting.”