The Seattle Kraken are armed with enough salary cap space to make legitimate runs at highly sought-after players when the free agency period opens Wednesday morning. We reviewed the top 10 free agents available entering free agency to evaluate the chances of the Seattle Kraken landing one of the big fish that will be on the market.

Gabriel Landeskog – Forward – Colorado Avalanche

Estimated Term and Salary: Seven years at $8 million to $9 million per year.

It’s no secret that Gabriel Landeskog, the rugged 28-year-old winger, will be coveted in free agency. The current captain of the Colorado Avalanche has averaged close to a point per game over the last three seasons. Most prognosticators never thought Landeskog would reach free agency and would just sign an extension with the Avalanche, but here we are. All 32 teams would love having a guy like Landeskog on their rosters, but very few have the salary cap space to make that kind of a commitment.

Likelihood of landing in Seattle: Moderate. Seattle certainly has the space and the need for someone like Landeskog, but he might be more interested in taking his services to a true Stanley Cup contender before taking his chance on an expansion franchise.

Dougie Hamilton – Defenseman – Carolina Hurricanes

Estimated Term and Salary: Seven years at $8 million to $9 million per year.

Hamilton is the standout defenseman in this year’s crop of free agents, and like Landeskog, can probably pick his spot. He is a big, scoring defenseman that will likely quarterback the power play wherever he lands.

Likelihood of landing in Seattle: Slim. The Kraken prioritized defense in the Expansion Draft and Mark Giordano is probably penciled in to run the power play.

Philipp Grubauer – Goalie – Colorado Avalanche

Estimated Term and Salary: Five years at $6 million to $7 million per year.

Grubauer is a one of the few top-tier goalies out there in free agency. He has been one of the more consistent netminders in the NHL, having never dipped below a .915 save percentage over a season since he broke into the league back in 2013-14. He will be looking for a significant pay raise from his $3.3 million salary.

Likelihood of landing in Seattle: Slim. The Kraken drafted and signed Chris Driedger in the Expansion Draft, and it appears Driedger and Vitek Vanecek will be the goaltenders in year one of the franchise.

Mike Hoffman – Forward – St. Louis Blues

Estimated Term and Salary: Five years at $5 million to $6 million per year.

Hoffman has flown under the radar the last few years and has averaged over 25 goals per season his entire career. Hoffman had 17 goals last season which ties the highest goal scorers on the Kraken’s current roster (Joonas Donskoi and Yanni Gourde both had 17 last season).

Likelihood of landing in Seattle: Moderate. Hoffman is 31, and the analytic projections do not favor players that are over 30, but the Kraken need scoring, and they need centers.

Phillip Danault – Forward – Montreal Canadiens

Estimated Term and Salary: Seven years at $5.5 million to $6.5 million per year.

Danault is a brilliant two-way center that has a lot of versatility. He can be used on the penalty kill and can slot in with a top line at five-on-five. He has never scored a lot of goals but can be relied upon for ~10 per season.

Likelihood of landing in Seattle: Somewhat high. Danault fits the identity of what the Seattle Kraken appear to be building and might have more goal scoring capabilities in him if he plays higher in the lineup.

Zach Hyman – Forward – Toronto Maple Leafs

Estimated Term and Salary: Seven or eight years at $5 million per year.

Hyman is a strong, offensive, play-driving forward. With his hard-working approach, he can be relied upon for ~20 goals a season

Likelihood of landing in Seattle: Slim. It sounds as if Hyman has an agreement in principle with Edmonton, and if his rights are traded to Edmonton before free agency begins, he will sign an eight-year deal. Otherwise it will be a seven-year deal, the max allowed for free agents that weren’t previously with the team.

Alex Wennberg – Forward – Florida Panthers

Estimated Term and Salary: Five years at $4.5 million to $5 million per year.

At 26, Wennberg is one of the youngest top-tier free agents on the list. The scouting report on Wennberg is that he is a very skilled pass-first center but seemed to change his game a bit this year. In his one and only year with Florida, he had 17 goals and 12 assists, the most goals he has scored in a single season.

Likelihood of landing in Seattle: Somewhat high. Wennberg looks like a perfect fit for Seattle, but most teams would love his services, so he will have options.

Brandon Saad – Forward – Colorado Avalanche

Estimated Term and Salary: Four years at $4.5 million to $5 million per year.

Saad has been an annual 20-goal scorer in the league. He is not an elite scorer or playmaker but can be a great supplementary piece to a line that does have an elite forward. He is also a two-time Stanley Cup Champion.

Likelihood of landing in Seattle: Moderate. The Kraken need goal scorers and Saad can score goals.

Linus Ullmark – Goalie – Buffalo Sabers

Estimated Term and Salary: Five years at $5 million to $6 million per year.

Ullmark has been an outstanding goalie on a bad team in his three full seasons with Buffalo. He is big, athletic, and consistent. He has the skills to make a playoff team into a Stanley Cup contender, though he has not been given this opportunity so far.

Likelihood of landing in Seattle: Slim. As stated above, the Kraken have their goalies accounted for and barring a trade, they will start the season with Driedger and Vanecek.

Pius Suter – Forward – Chicago Blackhawks

Estimated Term and Salary: Four years at $3.5 million to $4.5 million per year.

Suter has only one year under his belt in the NHL but showed he belongs with 14 goals over 55 games during the 2020-21 campaign. Prior to the NHL, he played pro hockey in the Swiss league where he led the league in scoring during the 2019-20 season. At just 25 years old, he is on the younger side of the free agents.

Likelihood landing in Seattle: Moderate. He does have a scoring touch and the Kraken need goal scorers. With only one pro season in North America to assess, signing Suter has some risk.

Setting expectations for free agency

Landing a top-10 free agent is rare, and if the Kraken can land one of the forwards from this list, it should be considered a major success. Conversely, if the Kraken do not land a top-10 free agent, there is still plenty of value out there. Signing Jaden Schwartz (this one sounds like it might actually happen), Blake Coleman, or Kyle Palmieri as free agents would be great additions to the Seattle Kraken, and they may not require as big of salaries or terms that some of the top-10 candidates would require.