Tom Kühnhackl
German forward who won two Stanley Cups with Pittsburgh.
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Tom Kühnhackl (born 21 January 1992) is a German professional ice hockey player currently with Adler Mannheim in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He also played in the NHL for the Pittsburgh Penguins and the New York Islanders. Kühnhackl is the first German-born NHL player to win the Stanley Cup twice with the same team, doing so with Pittsburgh in 2016 and 2017.
Kühnhackl started playing hockey at age two in his hometown of Landshut, where his father Erich—named Germany’s ice hockey player of the 20th century—had a long career. He played youth hockey for the Landshut Cannibals from 2007, alongside Tobias Rieder, and made his professional debut in the 2nd Bundesliga during the 2008–09 season. The following year, he appeared in four DEL games with the Augsburger Panther.
Ranked eighth among European skaters by NHL Central Scouting for the 2010 draft, Kühnhackl was selected 110th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins—his favorite team. He had been chosen 24th overall by the Windsor Spitfires in the 2009 CHL Import Draft but injuries delayed his move to North America until the 2010–11 season. With Windsor, he scored 39 goals and 29 assists in 63 games. In November 2011, he was traded to the Niagara IceDogs, and soon after received a 20-game suspension for an elbow to the head of Kitchener’s Ryan Murphy.
After signing a three-year, entry-level contract with Pittsburgh in March 2011, Kühnhackl turned pro in the 2012–13 season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL, but a dislocated shoulder ended his season after 11 games. He made his NHL debut in 2016 and scored his first NHL goal—a shorthanded breakaway—against Tampa Bay on February 20, 2016. Later that March, he signed a two-year extension alongside Scott Wilson and Bryan Rust. Kühnhackl then helped the Penguins win the Stanley Cup in 2016 and again in 2017, becoming the third German-born player to win the Cup and the first to do so twice with one team.
Unable to reach a new deal with Pittsburgh after the 2017–18 season, Kühnhackl became a free agent and signed a one-year contract with the New York Islanders in July 2018. He later joined the Bridgeport Sound Tigers’ training camp in January 2021 and signed another one-year deal. After 11 seasons in North America, he moved to Sweden’s SHL, signing a two-year contract with Skellefteå AIK in August 2021.
Lore & Background
Kühnhackl began his youth career with the Landshut Cannibals program and made his professional debut in Germany's 2nd Bundesliga during the 2008–09 season. He was selected 24th overall by the Windsor Spitfires in the 2009 CHL Import Draft and moved to North America for the 2010–11 season. In the OHL, he recorded 39 goals and 29 assists in 63 games with Windsor before being traded to the Niagara IceDogs in November 2011. During his time with Niagara, he received a 20-game suspension for an elbow to the head of Kitchener Rangers defenceman Ryan Murphy.
After signing an entry-level contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins in March 2011, Kühnhackl made his NHL debut in 2016. He scored his first NHL goal on 20 February 2016, a shorthanded breakaway against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
He played a role in the Penguins' 2016 Stanley Cup run, becoming the third German-born player to win the Cup, and in 2017 became the first German-born player to win it twice with the same team. After leaving Pittsburgh as a free agent, he signed a one-year contract with the New York Islanders in July 2018. He later returned to Europe, playing for Skellefteå AIK in the SHL before joining Adler Mannheim in the DEL.
Reader's Guide
Kühnhackl's significance lies in his role as a trailblazer for German hockey in the NHL. He was the first German-born player to win the Stanley Cup twice with the same franchise, a milestone that highlighted the growing presence of German players in the league. His path to the NHL included being a top-ranked European prospect in the 2010 draft, selected 110th overall by his childhood favorite team, the Pittsburgh Penguins. His NHL career, though not defined by high scoring, included key contributions during the Penguins' back-to-back championship runs.
After his time with the Islanders, he continued his career in Sweden and then returned to Germany, where he signed with Adler Mannheim. His international play includes representing Germany at various youth levels and with the senior team, where he scored the game-winning goal in a qualification tournament for the 2018 Winter Olympics that secured Germany's place in the Games. His family background is notable: his father, Erich, was named Germany's ice hockey player of the 20th century.
Career statistics and honours
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 2007–08 | Landshut Cannibals | DNL | 30 | 21 | 21 | 42 | 97 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| 2008–09 | Landshut Cannibals | DNL | 6 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 31 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 27 |
| 2008–09 | Landshut Cannibals | 2.GBun | 42 | 11 | 10 | 21 | 34 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| 2009–10 | Landshut Cannibals | 2.GBun | 38 | 12 | 9 | 21 | 38 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2009–10 | Augsburger Panther | DEL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2010–11 | Windsor Spitfires | OHL | 63 | 39 | 29 | 68 | 47 | 18 | 11 | 12 | 23 | 10 |
| 2011–12 | Windsor Spitfires | OHL | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2011–12 | Niagara IceDogs | OHL | 30 | 7 | 18 | 25 | 29 | 20 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 14 |
| 2012–13 | Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins | AHL | 11 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2012–13 | Wheeling Nailers | ECHL | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2013–14 | Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins | AHL | 48 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2013–14 | Wheeling Nailers | ECHL | 16 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| 2014–15 | Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins | AHL | 72 | 12 | 18 | 30 | 19 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 2015–16 | Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins | AHL | 23 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015–16 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 42 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 24 | 24 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
| 2016–17 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 57 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 18 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 2017–18 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 69 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2018–19 | New York Islanders | NHL | 36 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 2018–19 | Bridgeport Sound Tigers | AHL | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2019–20 | New York Islanders | NHL | 28 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2019–20 | Bridgeport Sound Tigers | AHL | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2020–21 | Bridgeport Sound Tigers | AHL | 22 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2021–22 | Skellefteå AIK | SHL | 46 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 2022–23 | Skellefteå AIK | SHL | 32 | 10 | 8 | 18 | 14 | 17 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
| 2023–24 | Adler Mannheim | DEL | 45 | 8 | 13 | 21 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| 2024–25 | Adler Mannheim | DEL | 43 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 18 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| NHL totals | 232 | 18 | 36 | 54 | 60 | 58 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 10 | ||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Germany | U17 | 9th | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 2 |
| 2009 | Germany | U17 | 6th | 5 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 2 |
| 2009 | Germany | WJC18 | 10th | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 2010 | Germany | WJC18 D1 | 1st | 5 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
| 2011 | Germany | WJC | 10th | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 16 |
| 2016 | Germany | OGQ | Q | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 2021 | Germany | WC | 4th | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 |
| 2022 | Germany | OG | 10th | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Junior totals | 27 | 14 | 7 | 21 | 26 | |||
| Senior totals | 17 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 4 | |||
Awards and honours
| Awards | Year | Ref |
|---|---|---|
| NHL | ||
| Stanley Cup champion | 2016, 2017 | |
Tables copied from the source article, totals included as the source gives them: Wikipedia: Tom Kühnhackl (CC BY-SA 4.0). Wide tables scroll sideways.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Tom Kühnhackl (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Statistics, medals and awards: the tables of the source article.
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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