The Seattle Kraken have played three games since returning from a lengthy hiatus that came while the world was transfixed on the highly successful 4 Nations Face-Off. In those three games, they have gone 1-2-0 with a 2-1 win over the Florida Panthers on Saturday, a 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday, and a 7-2 embarrassment against the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday.

The vibes remain not great.

While the team seems to be returning to good health, its prospects of making the playoffs haven’t changed; Seattle is 10 points outside of the postseason bubble and has five teams to jump over to get back in, so—barring the most miraculous run in NHL history—it will not be playing meaningful hockey the rest of the way.

A quirk in scheduling means that soon after the long break, the Kraken now have another unusual three-day layoff before welcoming the Vancouver Canucks to Climate Pledge Arena on Saturday for their first home game since a 3-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs way back on Feb. 6.

With the light schedule and the NHL Trade Deadline fast approaching, this felt like a good time to take stock and understand the state of the Seattle Kraken franchise.

Team getting healthier

On Saturday, captain and veteran winger Jordan Eberle played his first game since suffering a major pelvis injury after a hard slam into the end wall during a 3-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Nov. 14. His recovery was remarkable, considering the type of injury and the surgery that was required; the organization had given an accurate timeline for his rehab, but we at Sound Of Hockey were still pleasantly surprised that he was able to play again this season.

So far, coach Dan Bylsma has been easing Eberle back in with mostly a fourth-line role, but he did get up to 17:06 of ice time Tuesday. Look for Eberle to move back up the lineup to a more suitable spot in the coming games.

Young puck-moving defenseman Ryker Evans also returned Saturday from an upper-body injury that had held him out of the lineup since Jan. 28.

Brandon Montour had left Seattle’s 3-2 comeback overtime win against the Calgary Flames on Feb. 8 with an upper-body injury. Thankfully, the 4 Nations break was all he needed, as he was back in the lineup Saturday to face his old team and receive a warm welcome back from the Florida faithful. Montour has played north of 20 minutes per night the last three games, so he seems to be just fine.

That leaves only Yanni Gourde as the lone Kraken player currently unable to play due to injury. Gourde had surgery to repair a sports hernia at the end of January. The veteran pesky forward has not played since Jan. 2 but is making progress and participated in morning skate Tuesday in St. Louis wearing a red non-contact jersey. Seattle sent center Mitchell Stephens back to Coachella Valley of the American Hockey League on Wednesday morning, so that *could* be a sign that Gourde is getting close. If he were to return this weekend, though, he would be doing so well ahead of the original five-to-seven-week timeline that was set by the team, so we shall see…

If Gourde can return ahead of the deadline and get a couple games in, that would surely help his value, should Seattle decide to trade him.

Turmoil settling down

During an up-and-down road trip in mid-January, much ado was made over Kraken CEO Tod Leiweke showing up in Buffalo, apparently just to spark some life into the struggling club. The way it was reported by national media created upheaval and briefly gave the appearance that major changes to the front office or coaching staff could be incoming.

More than a month later, no such changes have been made, and we have seen no indication that anything like that is imminent. These topics will surely crop up again after the season, when the Kraken will have missed the playoffs for the third time in four years, but things appear stable for now.

Backup goalie intrigue

One of the larger headlines to come out of this season was $5.9 million veteran goaltender Philipp Grubauer being placed on waivers and sent to Coachella Valley after he posted a 5-15-1 record with a 3.83 goals against average and .866 save percentage, the worst numbers of his career, in 21 starts at the NHL level.

Since joining the Firebirds, Grubauer is 4-1-0 with a 2.59 goals against average and .904 save percentage against lesser competition.

When the Kraken waived Grubauer, Bylsma indicated that spending the 4 Nations break in the AHL would be a good opportunity for the 33-year-old to get lots of playing time and hopefully find his game. While his numbers have been better in the desert, the Kraken are so far remaining steadfast in their approach to the backup goalie position, leaving Grubauer to continue working through his struggles.

In Grubauer’s stead, Ales Stezka served as backup to Joey Daccord, while Seattle’s bona fide starter played every game after Grubi allowed five goals on 22 shots in a 6-4 loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Jan. 28. With the Kraken on a back-to-back over the weekend, the 28-year-old Stezka finally made his NHL debut Sunday in Tampa. He stopped 20 of 23 shots, but that was apparently enough of a look for now; the Czech netminder was returned to Coachella Valley on Monday.

Remarkably, Nikke Kokko was recalled that same day and relieved Daccord in St. Louis on Tuesday after Joey got hung out to dry and allowed five goals. Kokko only faced six shots in the second half of the game and allowed two goals, one an easy backdoor tap-in and one a screen-and-tip with Zack Bolduc left alone in front.

Kokko’s recall is notable because goalies historically take much longer to develop than skaters, and at 20 years old, he is way ahead of schedule. It’s unclear if he will get a start during this… cup of cocoa (I’ll show myself out)… or if more musical chairs will be played in the coming days and weeks. But the young Finn has earned this opportunity to at least spend time with the big club with his stellar stats in the AHL, where he has gone 15-4-1 with a 2.44 goals against average and .909 save percentage and clearly earned the confidence of his teammates and coaches.

While the future is bright for young Kokko, questions remain about how the Kraken front office will manage its goal crease for the foreseeable future. Daccord is locked up for the next five years as the No. 1, and Grubauer has two years left on his lucrative deal.

While I do think Grubauer will return to Seattle at some point down the stretch, I still think a buyout at the end of the season is the most likely resolution of his tenure with the organization. I also don’t think Stezka is viewed as a viable NHL backup candidate for next season, and while Kokko has dazzled in the AHL, I highly doubt Seattle will want him sitting on the bench behind Joey for long stretches. So, there may be some movement at the position over the offseason.

Trade deadline looming

I’ve already written about the upcoming NHL Trade Deadline, which falls on March 7, and my sentiments haven’t changed dramatically since that article. The Kraken still appear to be active sellers and should still be listening on all offers. There are certain players on the team that they should only part with if the return knocks Ron Francis’ socks off, but there should be no player that is truly “off limits.”

As mentioned in the previous Trade Deadline article, my own personal hope is that trades made by the Kraken this time around are not solely for draft capital, unless the return is a pick high enough that it can yield a potential star. My hope for this deadline is that Francis and his staff use it as an opportunity to shake up the aging core and continue trending toward relatively young players that can help now.