Tyler Kleven signs entry-level deal with Ottawa Senators

The Ottawa Senators have signed defensive prospect Tyler Kleven to a three-year entry-level contract.

The 21-year-old just finished his third season with North Dakota’s NCAA team, recording eight goals and 18 points in 35 games. Kleven, a USNTDP product, was taken 44th overall in 2020 – the same draft that saw the Sens take fellow North Dakota defenseman Jake Sanderson.

Kleven, a 6-foot-4 defenseman, is known for his punishing physical play, with no player besting his 214 penalty minutes during his 95 games over three seasons.

“We’re very pleased that Tyler has recently made the decision to begin his pro career,” Senators general manager Pierre Dorion said in a news release. “He’s a big, rangy, hard-nosed defender who maintains a physical presence while on the ice and an ability to hammer the puck with his shot.

“We’ve been especially impressed with his overall development dating to his draft year.”

Away from college, Kleven was part of USA’s team that won gold at the 2021 World Junior Championship and joined again for the 2022 summer tournament. He was also the most penalized player at the 2018 U-17 World Hockey Challenge with 16 points in just five games.

Kleven will give the blueline some extra size, with Nick Holden also standing tall at 6-foot-4 and 214 pounds. Kleven isn’t going to put up a ton of points, but he can be a nice menacing presence deeper in the lineup and has enough speed and skill to step up if needed.

The Senators currently have Sanderson, Thomas Chabot, Jakob Chychrun and Artem Zub signed to deals for next year. The team has a host of young blueliners signed to entry-level contracts, including Jacob Bernard-Docker, Lassi Thomson, Tomas Hamara and Jorian Donovan. It’ll be interesting to see how Kleven integrates into the lineup over the next few years, including how much development time in the AHL is needed.