# Tyler Kleven

Tyler Kleven (born January 10, 2002) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He played college hockey with the University of North Dakota. He was selected 44th overall in the second round of the 2020 NHL entry draft by the Senators. After leaving college, he began his professional career with the Senators in 2023.

## Playing career
### Amateur

Kleven joined the University of North Dakota (UND) hockey program in 2020. He spent three years with the Fighting Hawks. He was known for his shot from the point, marking 20 goals and 35 points in 95 games with UND. During his college career, Kleven was suspended three times.

### Professional

Kleven was selected 44th overall by the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Ottawa Senators in the second round of the 2020 NHL entry draft. He signed a three-year entry-level contract on March 23, 2023, with the Senators. He previously played with Senators teammates Jake Sanderson, Shane Pinto and Jacob Bernard-Docker at UND. An injury to Jakob Chychrun allowed Kleven to play in his first NHL game shortly after joining the team. He played his first NHL game against the Philadelphia Flyers on March 30, 2023. Another injury to a defenseman during the game, this time Travis Hamonic, forced coach D. J. Smith to play Kleven more than he would have liked, but it allowed Kleven to notch his first NHL point, an assist on a Claude Giroux goal in the third. The Senators won the game 5–4. He finished the season having played eight games.
Kleven attended Ottawa's 2023 training camp but was assigned to Ottawa's American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Belleville Senators, to start the 2023–24 season. After injuries to Thomas Chabot and Erik Brännström, Kleven was recalled by Ottawa on October 28. He appeared in five games, with one assist before being returned to Belleville on 19 November. He was recalled on March 28, 2024, again replacing an injured Thomas Chabot. Kleven appeared in four games with Ottawa before being returned to Belleville on April 5 after Chabot returned from injury. He finished the season with one assist for a total of one point in nine games with Ottawa, and five goals and 21 points in 53 games for Belleville. He also added one goal and two assists in Belleville's seven games during the 2024 Calder Cup playoffs.
For the 2024–25 season, Kleven made the Ottawa Senators out of training camp and was in the opening night roster. He scored his first NHL goal against Mackenzie Blackwood on November 27 in a 4–3 win against the San Jose Sharks.

## International play

Kleven played for Team USA at the IIHF World Junior Championship in 2021 and 2022 and won gold in 2021.
Following the end of the NHL season, Kleven joined the Team USA at the 2023 IIHF World Championship. The team finished fourth in the tournament.

## Career statistics
### Regular season and playoffs

| | | | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 2017–18 | Fargo Davies High | USHS | 27 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 54 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2018–19 | U.S. National Development Team | USHL | 31 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 45 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 |
| 2019–20 | U.S. National Development Team | USHL | 17 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 37 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2020–21 | University of North Dakota | NCHC | 22 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 37 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2021–22 | University of North Dakota | NCHC | 38 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 93 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2022–23 | University of North Dakota | NCHC | 35 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 84 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2022–23 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2023–24 | Belleville Senators | AHL | 53 | 5 | 16 | 21 | 51 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 2023–24 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| NHL totals | NHL totals | NHL totals | 17 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — |

### International

| Year | Team | Event | | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 2018 | United States | U17 | | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| 2021 | United States | WJC | | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2022 | United States | WJC | | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | United States | WC | | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Junior totals | Junior totals | Junior totals | Junior totals | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 16 |
| Senior totals | Senior totals | Senior totals | Senior totals | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |