Carlos Händel (born 31 March 2007) is a German professional ice hockey player who is a defenceman for Kölner Haie of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He was selected in the sixth round, 177th overall, by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2025 NHL entry draft.
Playing career Europe Händel began his development in his native Germany, playing junior hockey with Jungadler Mannheim, the junior affiliate of the Deutsche Eishockey League (DEL)'s Adler Mannheim. He continued his career abroad in Sweden, playing for the affiliate of Frölunda HC. In 2024, he was selected by the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) in the first round of that year's CHL Import Draft.
North America Joining the Mooseheads organization ahead of the 2024–25 season, Händel transitioned well to major junior play, finishing as the top scoring rookie blueliner in the QMJHL with 26 points in 52 total games. For his efforts, he was named to the league's All-Rookie Team. Entering the ensuing 2025 NHL entry draft as a top-75 ranked North American skater by the National Hockey League (NHL) Central Scouting Bureau, Händel was ultimately selected in the sixth round, 177th overall, by the Montreal Canadiens.
After attending the Canadiens' development and rookie camps during the 2025 offseason, he was reassigned to the QMJHL ranks for the 2025–26 season.
Kölner Haie With the ambition to continue his development in the professional ranks, Händel opted to return to his native Germany in signing a one-year contract with Kölner Haie of the DEL on 9 June 2026.
International play
Internationally, Händel has represented Germany at both under-18 and under-20 levels of competition. In April 2024, he helped lead his country to victory at the IIHF World U18 Championship Division I A tournament to earn promotion to the top division. Serving as team captain the following year, Händel registered four points across tournament play, including a record-setting two goals over the span of 19 seconds in Germany's final round-robin game versus Switzerland.
Appearing in both the 2025 and 2026 iterations of the World Junior Championship, he contributed four assists in five games at the latter, culminating with a three-point effort during his country's relegation matchup against Denmark on 2 January 2026.
Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2021–22 Jungadler Mannheim DNL 36 8 20 28 10 — — — — — 2022–23 Jungadler Mannheim DNL 12 6 19 25 16 — — — — — 2022–23 Frölunda HC U16 U16 SM 3 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 2023–24 Malmö Redhawks J18 28 6 17 23 16 3 0 1 1 2 2023–24 Malmö Redhawks J20 9 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 2024–25 Halifax Mooseheads QMJHL 52 3 23 26 20 10 1 3 4 2 2025–26 Halifax Mooseheads QMJHL 44 3 19 22 30 — — — — —QMJHL totals 96 6 42 48 50 10 1 3 4 2
International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2024 Germany U18 D1A 5 0 5 5 0 2024 Germany HG18 6th 4 0 1 1 4 2025 Germany U18 6th 4 2 2 4 2 2025 Germany HG18 8th 4 1 1 2 2 2025 Germany WJC 9th 5 0 0 0 2 2026 Germany WJC 9th 5 0 4 4 2 Junior totals 27 3 13 16 12
Awards and honours Award Year Ref DNL U17 Champions 2022 QMJHL All-Rookie Team 2025
Records IIHF World U18 Championships: Fastest two goals, single player: 19 sec (2025)
References
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