It wasn’t the greatest week in Kraken land, with just one win and three losses over the last seven games. That lone victory came against the struggling San Jose Sharks, who currently sit dead last in the NHL with a record of 15-33-6. The coup de grâce came in the form of a 3-2 regulation loss to the Calgary Flames on Sunday, a game in which the Kraken spotted the Flames three goals in the first period. As rough as the results were, the team continues to compete, making them enjoyable to root for and watch.
The week began with a 3-2 loss to Edmonton, a game that felt like a real opportunity to steal a win against one of the NHL’s best teams. The second game, a 6-4 loss to the Anaheim Ducks, felt like the final nail in the coffin for any realistic playoff hopes.
Sunday’s loss to the Flames was particularly frustrating. The first period featured two goalie interference challenges—both going against Seattle—and five Kraken penalties. I don’t usually critique the referees too much, but they had a rough night, missing a blatant trip on Kaapo Kakko, a hold on Oliver Bjorkstrand, and a too-many-men penalty on Calgary with 10:45 left in the third that went unnoticed. I’m sure there were other missed calls, likely some that Flames fans weren’t happy about either.
If there’s one thing this team has been consistent with all season, though, it’s their refusal to quit. No matter the score, they continue to fight their way back into games. It may not earn them points in the standings, but it certainly makes them easy to root for.
Salary cap updates
In case you missed it, the NHL and NHL Players’ Association announced new salary cap guidance for the next three seasons. According to Friday’s announcement, the cap will increase by 9 percent annually over the next three years. That compounding increase will raise the upper limit by 35 percent by the 2027-28 season compared to the current year.
I foreshadowed this massive salary cap increase back in July when the Kraken signed Chandler Stephenson and Brandon Montour to long-term contracts—six and seven years, respectively. At the time, armchair GM’s argued that these deals would age poorly, but few considered the substantial cap growth once the league recouped losses from the COVID-impacted seasons.
This isn’t exactly “found money” for any specific team, as all clubs will benefit from the added cap space over the next three years. As of now, the only restricted free agents due for new contracts are Kaapo Kakko, Ryker Evans, and Tye Kartye. Kakko is the most intriguing of the group, as he could opt for a one-year deal and test unrestricted free agency next summer. Given the expected salary cap increases, plenty of teams will have money to spend. The Kraken are surely aware of that, and if Kakko is happy with his brief tenure in Seattle, they may offer him a long-term deal that could initially look like an overpay but might make sense in the long run.
Yanni Gourde undergoes surgery
Late Friday afternoon, the Kraken announced that Yanni Gourde underwent successful surgery to repair a sports hernia. Gourde has not played since Jan. 2. It appears the team and Gourde hoped to avoid surgery; he had been skating multiple times over the previous week to test it out, but ultimately, the procedure was necessary.
His expected recovery timeline is five to seven weeks—right around the trade deadline. The injury certainly doesn’t help his trade value, but injured players do get moved at the deadline by teams looking for playoff reinforcements. Before the injury, Gourde was a frequent name on trade target lists, and several teams are in the market for centers. We’ll have to see how this plays out, but there’s a chance we’ve already seen the last of Gourde in a Kraken jersey. If he is traded, there will be plenty more to discuss, but for whatever reason, I keep thinking about how Kraken PA announcer Chet Buchanan enthusiastically calls out “Yanni Gourde!” in the starting lineup introductions.
Quick thoughts on Philipp Grubauer
In other major news, Philipp Grubauer was placed on waivers and assigned to the Coachella Valley Firebirds. There’s no question that his performance with the Kraken has been disappointing. Sending him to Coachella seemed like the only viable option. If he’s going to reclaim an NHL role, he needs to play his way out of this slump, and the Kraken simply can’t afford to take that risk at the NHL level.
The timing works well with the 4 Nations Face-Off break, giving Grubauer a chance to play without missing NHL action. He played his first AHL game on Saturday night, and Coachella has five more games before the NHL resumes on Feb. 22. He likely won’t start all of them, but he should get at least two or three starts.
All signs point to Grubauer being a buyout candidate this offseason. However, as they did with Chris Driedger last year, the Kraken could opt to bring in another backup and ride out his cap hit for two years instead of stretching it over four via a buyout. Either way, it’s hard to imagine him in a Kraken uniform next season, even in a backup role. Here are the buyout details per capwages.com
Off the ice, Grubauer has been a fantastic presence in the community. He’s one of the few Kraken players who lives in Seattle year-round and has been actively involved in local appearances and events. But at the end of the day, this is a performance-driven business, and the Kraken had to make the best decision for the team.
The race for the final wild card spot
Last week, I mentioned that the Kraken’s only realistic path to keeping their playoff hopes alive was winning three of four games, including a regulation win against Calgary on Sunday. That didn’t happen.
The Kraken now sit 10 points out of the final wild card spot, with four teams standing between them and a playoff berth. Mathematically, they’re still alive, but if the projected “get-in” target is 95 points, they would need to play .821 hockey the rest of the season. And if things weren’t already bleak enough, here’s a look at the strength of their remaining schedule…
Sunday’s win over the Kraken was a crucial victory for Calgary, especially on a night when Vancouver lost, giving the Flames a narrow two-point lead for the final wild card spot. Calgary and Vancouver are beginning to separate themselves from the rest of the pack, making it look like a two-horse race after all. I really like Utah’s team, but they just haven’t been able to put it together when it matters most.
Other musings
- I know it was a rough week, but all three losses were essentially one-goal games, with empty-net goals sealing the defeats against both the Oilers and Ducks. The Kraken are still competing, and while one-goal losses can be frustrating, I still enjoy watching them play.
- On Sunday night, the Kraken appeared to score first when Jaden Schwartz knocked home a rebound in the opening seconds of a Kraken power play. However, the Flames challenged the goal, and it was overturned. Calgary went on to score the first goal later in the period. It’s hard not to wonder how the game might have played out if the goal had stood. The Kraken are 13-6-3 when scoring first, while the Flames are just 6-13-4 when trailing first. I understand why the goal was reversed, but I’ve seen far more egregious goalie interference go uncalled in similar situations.
- I’ve heard the explanation coach Dan Bylsma was given for the non-reversal of Calgary’s second goal, but I find it hard to believe that Yegor Sharangovich was actually trying to play the puck when he struck Joey Daccord’s stick. Regardless, I do appreciate that we at least got an explanation of the reasoning behind the decision.
- The Kraken have been one of the more disciplined teams in the league this season, averaging the fourth-fewest penalties at 2.85 per game. However, Sunday night tied their season high with seven penalties, and the Flames capitalized on two of them.
- Since Yanni Gourde’s injury, the Kraken’s penalty kill has dipped. Before his absence, they were killing penalties at a 78.9 percent rate, but since Jan. 3, that number has dropped to 74.1 percent.
- Jordan Eberle has been back on the ice for a while, and Mike Benton captured some of his work on Friday. It’s unclear when he will return, but at the very latest, I’d expect him back after the 4 Nations Face-Off break.
Jordan Eberle, continuing to work on his way back: out early with skills coach Matt Larke. #SeaKraken pic.twitter.com/s9tPoOuzm7
— Mike Benton (@Benton_Mike) February 1, 2025
- The Seattle Thunderbirds played a thrilling game on Saturday night, knocking off the Eastern Conference-leading Medicine Hat Tigers in a shootout. The Tigers were 5-0-0 against the U.S. Division before falling to the Thunderbirds. It’s always a great time to check out some WHL hockey, but if you have been putting it off because of the Kraken schedule, the 4 Nations Face-Off break might be a good time to attend a game.
- Scott Wheeler of The Athletic has been releasing his NHL prospect rankings over the past few weeks, and this week, he ranked the Kraken’s prospect pool 10th in the league. These rankings are subjective, so I don’t get too high or low on them, but ideally, Seattle remains a consistent top-10 team.
- Wheeler ranks Berkly Catton as the top Kraken prospect. Catton is currently on a nine-game point streak, recording 24 points over that span, and helped Spokane defeat the first-place Silvergips 10-3 Saturday in Everett.
Goal of the week
I love Monty wrist shots when he is barreling down the slot.
Player performances
Ben Meyers (CVF/SEA) – Meyers has recorded three goals and three assists over his last five games for the Coachella Valley Firebirds.
Nikke Kokko (CVF/SEA) – The 20-year-old goaltender is 4-1-0 with a .931 save percentage over his last five starts for Coachella Valley. Kraken fans should be excited about Kokko’s development so far, but he likely won’t be in Seattle for a couple more years, while he continues to refine his game in the AHL.
Shane Wright (SEA) – Wright is currently on a five-game point streak.
The week ahead
This will be the final week of games before the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, with the Kraken hosting the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday, the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday, and wrapping up with a final game Saturday night in Calgary. The outlook isn’t promising. The Red Wings dominated the Kraken 6-2 in Detroit back in early December, a game in which Philipp Grubauer allowed three goals on four shots in the first seven minutes. Detroit will also come into Seattle with a six-game win streak. Meanwhile, the Kraken have only beaten the Leafs once in franchise history and have never defeated them at Climate Pledge Arena.
It’s shaping up to be a tough week, but the Kraken have risen to the occasion before, earning wins against Vegas, Carolina, and Minnesota this season, so regardless of the opponent, a loss is never a foregone conclusion. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again—this team never gives up.