The Kraken remain captain-less (for now), along with Utah, as one of the two remaining NHL teams without a full-time captain in place. But just because there is no captain at the moment doesn’t mean there aren’t leaders beginning to blossom elsewhere within the organization.
Seattle has steadily built its farm system by way of players who felt destined to lead by example one way or another on their own squads. Whether it be scoring tons of points, laying hits, or just being all-around solid players, there have been expectations set forth by the development staff for them to take on the responsibilities of a leader.
Kraken head coach Dan Bylsma was adamant about seeing young players continue to grow as leaders with their junior teams this upcoming season.
“It’s their job to take that and be leaders with their own careers,” Bylsma said. “It takes the lessons they learned, taking what they saw here [at training camp] and adding it to their game going back to juniors and having a great season.”
The Seattle Kraken have leaned heavily on the Western Hockey League through the last few draft cycles, but it looks to be paying dividends this season. No Kraken prospects were full-time captains on any team anywhere in the CHL last season. But for this season, there will be four, and they were all named this week in the league closest to home.
Clarke Caswell, Swift Current Broncos
After coming close to reaching the WHL Finals last season, the Eastern Conference finalist Swift Current Broncos had a lot of players graduate through the system last season.
Those exits left an opportunity for Kraken forward prospect Clarke Caswell to further his progression with the Broncos, and he was named the captain of Swift Current last week.
The fourth-round selection in 2023 had 23 goals and 77 points while playing all 68 games for the Broncos in 2023-24. Caswell, 17, mentioned Yanni Gourde as a player he got to shadow during his time at Kraken training camp.
“They work really hard,” Caswell said. “They never take days off. It’s their job to play hockey, so coming to the rink prepared is what I’m going to bring to the team.”
Ollie Josephson, Red Deer Rebels
Selected in the fourth round of this past NHL Draft, Kraken forward prospect Ollie Josephson was named the captain of the Red Deer Rebels on Thursday.
Josephson, 18, looks like a prime breakout candidate this season for the improved Rebels, after he tallied a career-high 47 points, also while playing all 68 games for the Rebels in 2023-24.
Kaden Hammell, Everett Silvertips
This one’s been alluded to by Sound Of Hockey for some time this past half-year or so, but it was finally confirmed on Friday night by the Everett Silvertips. Kaden Hammell, along with Eric Jamieson, was named a co-captain for the 2024-25 season, continuing a loose franchise tradition of carrying two captains for the season.
The native of Langley, B.C., has blossomed into a premier shutdown defenseman in the WHL, while also continuing to develop an offensive element to his game year after year, similar to Jamie Oleksiak.
Hammell, a fifth-round pick in 2022, spoke about the type of group he envisions leading.
“There’s a lot of guys that bring leadership to the room,” Hammell said. “The biggest thing is making sure everybody’s comfortable and having fun this year. We’ve got a pretty good team, so we want to make sure that we’re super competitive but having fun on and off the ice.”
There may not be a more valuable leadership opportunity in junior hockey right now than the chance to be the first real veteran mentor for a star-bound talent in fellow defenseman Landon DuPont.
Berkly Catton, Spokane Chiefs
Finally, and easily the biggest tongue twister of the bunch (Captain Catton), Berkly Catton was named captain of the Spokane Chiefs on Saturday night.
Not much more needs to be mentioned about arguably the best prospect in the Kraken’s system. Catton, 18, has been with the Chiefs throughout his whole WHL career and has seen them grow from bottom dwellers to one of the favorites to win the U.S. Division this season.
He wowed with his 116 points in 68 games in 2023-24, which parlayed him into the eighth overall selection in this summer’s draft. He’s poised for yet another standout season.
Other notable leadership positions
A few other Kraken prospects were assigned leadership roles as assistant captains on their respective CHL teams, including Kraken defensive prospect Caden Price for the Kelowna Rockets (third-round pick in 2023) and dynamic forward prospect Carson Rehkopf for the inaugural Brampton Steelheads (second-round pick in 2023).
The Seattle Kraken’s commitment to developing leadership within their ranks is evident, with several prospects stepping into captaincy roles this season. With talented players like Caswell, Josephson, Hammell, and Catton leading their teams, the future looks promising for the Seattle franchise. As these young leaders gain valuable experience, they are bound to play a significant role in the Kraken’s future success both on and off the ice.
Header photo: Kaden Hammell poses with fellow members of Everett leadership group. (Photo/Everett Silvertips)
great article and I am looking forward to watching the Silvertips and other Kraken futures that visit this year. thank u
Goyette was the captain in Sudbury last year.