The NHL’s annual mad dash from the Stanley Cup Final to the July 4th holiday has ended. While there is still business being transacted, things have cooled off following a chaotic two-week fever dream that included the NHL Draft, free agency, Development Camps, the first buyout window, qualifying restricted free agents, and—just to keep things interesting—a slew of trades.
With things settling down, this feels like a good time to empty the Kraken Notebook and bring you up to speed on what has transpired for Seattle over the past fortnight.
Philipp Grubauer is staying
This is relatively old news, and although we talked about it on last week’s Sound Of Hockey Podcast, I haven’t written about it yet. So, here’s the update: Philipp Grubauer is staying with the Seattle Kraken.
Jason Botterill just confirmed that Philipp Grubauer will be back next season. #SeaKraken
— Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) June 28, 2025
After a gruelingly long Day 1 of the NHL Draft, Kraken general manager Jason Botterill was asked point blank by Glenn Dreyfuss if Grubauer would be back next season following much speculation both locally and nationally that he would be bought out of the last two years of his contract.
Here’s what Botterill said:
“Yeah, Philipp will be part of our group here, for sure, and we’ll continue to work on different things on— obviously, we brought in Colin [Zulienello] to be our goalie coach moving forward here. We are going to have different things to work on from that standpoint. We’ll continue to look at different ways we can improve the team in front of [the goalies]. I think it’s one of the things that Lane [Lambert] has talked a lot about as a head coach is making sure that we play strong in front of them, and we’ll continue to look at different ways to improve our goaltending position with both Joey and Philipp.
“It’s a situation that— people sometimes think that if you buy a player out, it just automatically goes away. There’s still a cap hit and stuff from that standpoint. And we believe Philipp can bounce back from that situation, and we think there’s an opportunity still for success here.”
A month ago, I was certain Seattle would find a way to move on from Grubauer and his $5.9 million cap hit over the next two seasons. Coming off the worst season of his career, in which he went 8-17-1 with a 3.49 goals-against average and .875 save percentage and even landed in AHL Coachella Valley for a stretch, it seemed to me there was no way Seattle could bring him back.
But once the team fired goalie coach Steve Briere and replaced him with Firebirds goalie coach Colin Zulienello, signs were suddenly pointing toward the relationship with Grubauer continuing. After all, when Grubauer returned from his stint in CV at the end of last season, he spoke glowingly of his time working with Zulienello, while also taking a few pot shots (at least I thought they were pot shots) at Briere and former head coach Dan Bylsma for their communication and the way they were deploying Grubauer in net. Promoting a goalie coach that Grubauer clearly likes indicated that he could end up sticking around. Lo and behold, Grubauer remains with the team.
Financially speaking, if the team had bought Grubauer out, then he would have still counted for $1.98 million in 2025-26 and $3.08 million in 2026-27. Then, the team would have had two additional penalty years of $1.68 million per season in 2027-28 and 2028-29. So what Botterill said about that side of the decision is true.
But the optics are still difficult when you consider just how tough of a season Grubauer had. The Kraken want to portray to the fanbase that they are looking to become a perennial playoff contender, yet they’re running it back with a goalie who couldn’t even be relied upon in the second of back-to-backs last season while making $5.9 million.
I don’t believe the front office is blind to said optics, though. Where I think the decision to keep Grubauer (and instead replace the goalie coach) was really made was when the market for free-agent goalies started to develop. Plain and simple, there were no worthwhile goalies on the market. The best option was Jake Allen, who ended up re-signing in New Jersey anyway, so he wasn’t even really available. Beyond that, guys like David Rittich, Dan Vladar, and Alex Lyon were the only ones getting signed as backups, and none of those strike me as massive upgrades over Grubauer.
In fairness to Grubauer, he did look a lot better when he got back from the AHL at the end of last season, and he was excellent at the IIHF World Championship for Team Germany, going 2-1-0 with a 2.02 GAA and .930 save percentage. Maybe that carries over into next season?
I do also want to call out that Grubauer remains an extremely easy guy to root for, continuing to make Seattle his summer home and even appearing at Kraken Development Camp last week to help prospect Visa Vedenpää and the other invitee goalies that were there. It would be really nice to see him bounce back and finally put together the type of season that made us think the Kraken had hit the jackpot when they signed him in 2021.
Here’s hoping he sticks it to me and all the other media people that incorrectly predicted the Kraken would buy him out.
Development Camp thoughts
Speaking of Vedenpää, he was awesome in the Stucky Cup scrimmage on Thursday, backstopping Team Blue to a 4-3 comeback win over Team White. Vedenpää, the only drafted goalie in attendance, played the whole game and made a bunch of big-time stops, while the three camp invitees rotated through Team White’s net.
Vedenpää, 20, had a tough season in Finland, missing most of the year with an undisclosed health issue.
“With Visa, we’re so proud of this kid,” Kraken former (more on that in a bit) director of player development Jeff Tambellini said. “He dealt with some tough health issues throughout the year, missed the whole back half. He was supposed to be one of the goaltenders for Team Finland at World Juniors, so for him to make the comeback, get in a game, play that well in front of all our fans, for us, that’s a 10 out of 10 day.”
Unsurprisingly, Berkly Catton also jumped off the page at Dev Camp, looking lightyears ahead of some of the other players in attendance. It’s important to remember that he’s facing other very young players in that setting, but for a 19-year-old looking to make the jump from the WHL to the NHL in a few months, you want to see progression, and you want him to stand out from the pack. He definitely accomplished that. He’s faster and stronger than last summer, he’s mature well beyond his years, and the way he floats across the ice gives a real “NHL-ready” vibe.
Berkly Catton is looking so smooth. #SeaKraken pic.twitter.com/T47j8kVXh4
— Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) July 1, 2025
A few other players that stood out:
- Blake Fiddler – The 6-foot-5, 220-pound defenseman that the Kraken traded up to get in the second round looks like a real player. He’s remarkably smooth for his size and seems to handle the puck well. He also told us in his interview on the Sound Of Hockey Podcast that he’s “still growing.”
- Jake O’Brien – O’Brien got a little too cute with the puck a couple times in the Stucky Cup, but he also showed flashes of the elite skill that made him worthy of the No. 8 overall pick in the draft. He’s very shifty and has fantastic playmaking vision. It will be fun to see how he progresses in the OHL this next season. Botterill walked out on the ice at halftime of the scrimmage and had O’Brien sign his entry-level contract in front of the many attending fans.
Jake O’Brien signs his entry-level contract with Jason Botterill before the start of the second half. #SeaKraken pic.twitter.com/DzCSNxg4Ag
— Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) July 3, 2025
- Caden Price – The 19-year-old defenseman who got traded from Kelowna to Lethbridge in the WHL this past season was flying under the radar as a prospect for a while. But he ended up playing a big role for Team Canada at the World Junior Championship, and he placed first in fitness testing this past week and looked great on the ice. Keep an eye on him over the next season or two…
- Ben MacDonald – As a 21-year-old college player, MacDonald was on the older end of the Dev Camp spectrum. Still, he was notable with his play in the Stucky Cup and even his practice performances. He looked strong and fast and set up a highlight-reel goal in the scrimmage by spinning off a check in the corner and finding an open teammate in the slot.
- Reese Hamilton – Hamilton is not a Kraken prospect but was invited to camp after going undrafted last week. He had an impressive 16-year-old season for the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL with eight goals and 23 assists in 42 games but then went pretty quiet in his 17 season with just 14 total points (4-10=14) in 59 games split across the Hitmen and Regina Pats. But Hamilton caught my eye a bunch of times at Dev Camp and got called out by both Tyson Jugnauth and Tambellini as a player they both thought should have been drafted. Hamilton will go back into the draft next year, but he’s a player to monitor.
“To get a Reese Hamilton into camp, a player that at the start of the year was being talked about in the first or second round, and we get a free look at him here,” Tambellini said. “From our standpoint, that’s fantastic. So we’re looking at them all differently. Again, different timelines, but always great when you get a player that you don’t expect to get to camp.”
Tambellini moving on
Speaking of Tambellini, news broke Monday morning that he has been hired by the Tampa Bay Lightning as an assistant general manager. Selfishly, we’re devastated by this news, because Tambellini did an awesome job in his role for the Kraken, and working with him was an absolute delight. That said, many congrats to “Tambo,” and we wish him the very best in his new role.
RFA updates
Last week, the Kraken extended qualifying offers to all three of their restricted free agents, Kaapo Kakko, Ryker Evans, and Tye Kartye. They then signed Kartye to a two-year deal with a $1.25 million cap hit. That’s a fine number and a nice payday for the depth forward who was signed as an undrafted free agent and worked his way up through the ranks to become a full-time NHLer with the Kraken.
Kakko filed for arbitration on Saturday. That doesn’t necessarily mean there will be an abitration hearing. Indeed, parties more frequently agree to a new deal before the hearing, which will be scheduled to happen between July 20 and August 4. It does guarantee that, one way or another, a deal will get done with Kakko. It also eliminates the possibility of him signing an offer sheet with another team. If this does end in a hearing, the neutral arbitrator will award a one-year contract, after which Kakko will be an unrestricted free agent.
Arbitration hearings are contentious and can really tarnish a team’s relationship with a player. Plus, the Kraken surely want to lock Kakko up for longer than one year, so it behooves Seattle to get something done before this gets to a hearing. But from the player’s perspective, he’s also as little as one year away from a massive payday on the open market as an unrestricted free agent.
I believe Kakko likes playing in Seattle, but does he like it enough to sign a longer-term deal in the next couple weeks and forgo his upcoming opportunity to become a UFA?
Are the Kraken done reshaping their roster?
Aside from the trades that brought in Mason Marchment and Freddy Gaudreau and removed Andre Burakovsky (the Kraken did end up buying out Joe Veleno, the return in the Burakovsky trade) and the signing of shutdown defenseman Ryan Lindgren, the Kraken still haven’t made a move that I think puts them back in playoff contention. I believe that—if they do truly want to compete for the postseason next year—they need to add a winger that can reliably score 30-plus goals.
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet has speculated that the Kraken were considering a trade with the St. Louis Blues for Jordan Kyrou but didn’t pull the trigger. That, to me, fits the bill as exactly the kind of acquisition the Kraken need and also tells me they aren’t opposed to continuing to seek offensive upgrades.
In my reaction to the Lindgren signing, I wrote that the numbers don’t align right now, with five left-shot defensemen in the fold. So is this the roster that Seattle will roll with in 2025-26? Or is there yet a “splashy” acquisition on the horizon, perhaps with a defenseman exiting and a top-six forward entering?
Here’s what Botterill said when I asked him about that at the draft:
“I think there’s 31 other teams that want to make a splasher addition to their roster, and I think you see in other markets, everyone’s trying from that standpoint, for sure. We’ll continue to work on developing our own players internally. We’re excited about some of our young players, excited about a player like Chandler Stephenson being comfortable in this market in his second year. But hey, we continue to have draft capital, continue to have cap space to work on that, and we’ll see how it goes.”
Here’s my updated depth chart projection after adding in Lindgren and removing Veleno. I do not think Jani Nyman and Berkly Catton will play together on the fourth line; it’s just where I think they “stack up” at the moment.
There is room to add a forward and remove a defenseman here…
Forwards
Jaden Schwartz // Matty Beniers // Kaapo Kakko
Jared McCann // Chandler Stephenson // Mason Marchment
Eeli Tolvanen // Shane Wright // Jordan Eberle
Jani Nyman // Freddy Gaudreau // Berkly Catton
Tye Kartye
Defense
Vince Dunn // Adam Larsson
Ryker Evans // Brandon Montour
Ryan Lindgren // Jamie Oleksiak
Josh Mahura
Ville Ottavainen
Goalies
Joey Daccord
Philipp Grubauer
Matt Murray
Darren Brown
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at soundofhockey.com and the host of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is a member of the PHWA and is also usually SOH’s Twitter intern (but please pretend you don’t know that). Follow him @DarrenFunBrown and @sound_hockey or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
Great summary. Thank you.
I think Catton will be playing next season, but I will be surprised (shocked?) if they start him centering a line with two other young players. He is more likely to be on a LW with either Matty or Shane. You also missed Gaudreau in your chart…honest oversight I am sure. Also no way Lindgren is a “3rd pair” D.
Schwarz // Beniers // Kakko
Catton // Wright // Eberle
McCann // Stephenson // Marchment
Tolvanen // Gaudreau // Nyman
Dunn // Larsson
Lindgren // Montour
Oleksiak // Evans
Personally, if my team starts the year with Oleksiak on the roster I don’t know how much value I’m adding to his trade prospects playing him on the third pair. If he is on the roster, I’m putting him with Montour and playing Lindgren on the third pair – where he’s still available for the PK. With that in mind, I could see a Mahura/Evans rotation… and of course there are the perpetual injuries to deal with.
I wouldn’t be playing someone for their potential “trade prospects.” I would be trying to make the best team I could. Oleksiak solidly belongs on a third pair, in my opinion. The possibility he might be overpaid for that role is a different issue, but it doesn’t change things. You can still make Lindgren available for the PK. Evans could move up to take a shift or two in relief, if needed. There aren’t really rules around that stuff.
I wouldn’t disagree if there was an actual degrees of difference argument to be made here, but this collection is pretty amorphous. I think it’s a stretch to say either of Evans or Lindgren is “solidly” ahead of Oleksiak. I think you play Evans up because you want to support his development, but I’m not quite convinced he’s a No.4 just yet, so is that really what’s happening? I also agree that you select your lineup to win, but we know teams “feature” players all the time, so actually managing a team is – I think – a bit more complicated. If you want to construct your roster with certain assumptions, by all means. I don’t think going in there is a player in this trio that warrants preference… so I’m going with Oleksiak, especially considering the “new coach”. I also think there is a strong possibility he doesn’t start the season in Seattle.
Interesting ideas. My thinking is they brought in Lindgren specifically to create and develop a regular pair with Montour, similar to Dunn and Larsson. We seem to have plenty of guys who can fulfill a third pair role, including The Rig.
“In fairness to Grubauer, he did look a lot better when he got back from the AHL at the end of last season”.
Remember how “good” he looked when he came back after he went down with an injury and lost the No.1 spot to Joey? Remember how “sharp” he was against the Islanders on his return? Remember his start against the Penguins? – for my money one of his best as a Kraken. And then he followed that return up with this past season.
Fool me once, shame on you… fool me – can’t get fooled again.
– George W. Bush
I should just be content that Darren has finally come around on Grubauer, but this is still way understated. He was the very worst goalie in the NHL for 2 out of his first 4 seasons, and in aggregate, has been one of the worst over that stretch combined. Who cares if he was good for a few games after his AHL stint when the Kraken were already basically eliminated from playoff contention? There is literally no goalie out there who wouldn’t be an upgrade at this point. Lyon, Rittich, even Steska.
I also hate the message that this sends to the rest of the team. There are very few things more frustrating to a team than having a goalie who is a sieve. It showed last season — the response goals and the “oooo gruby wants that one back” goals were back in full force, and you can just see any momentum just disintegrate. It’s deflating to the rest of the players to begin with, but then they see the team be like “let’s run it back again!!” They’re trying to foster a winning culture, but this move is ultimate loser sh*t.
I think you’re absolutely correct that at this point – and with this roster – it’s easy to consider Oleksiak the third pair talent, I’m just not sure it’s that straight forward. My assumption has been all along – and this is probably nonsense – they do not plan to re-sign Oleksiak and they may also be considering the possibility of needing to move Evans if they are going to be in on a trade… and as such, Lindgren was brought in to hedge against either of those outcomes.
Based on how Ceci and Dumo did this past free agency, it’s likely Oleksiak would get more than the Kraken might be willing to pay him, but that could depend on how Lindgren works out, as you say.
Oops! Thank you for pointing that out. Yes, I meant to include Gaudreau, and no, I don’t think they’ll play Nyman and Catton together on the fourth line. Just where I think they stack up right now. I added Gaudreau and a note about that.
I’m not convinced Catton is ready to leap from the WHL to the NHL. I want to see more of how he matches up against fully-grown pros – so I’m holding judgment until training camp and the preseason.
If there is any addition to the team this year who inspires hope in the upcoming season, he is Colin Zulienello. You would not think that an internal hire would be cause for genuine excitement, but the work he has done in Coachella Valley has been otherworldly. First he took late-blooming Ottawa Senators afterthought Joey Daccord and coached him into a genuine star in Palm Desert before Daccord moved to Seattle and lifted his star even higher. Then Chris Driedger takes over the net and backstops his way back to the NHL in one year. The very next year, very early-blooming Nikke Kokko steals the starting job from veteran Ales Stezka and doesn’t let go. Oh, and in the same year the mightily struggling Phillip Grubauer gets sent to the desert after a couple consecutive disastrous starts, spends a few weeks working with Zulienello, and comes back looking like a solid NHL goalie. That’s not even mentioning the progress of Kim Saaranin. Everything Zulienello has touched since he arrived in CV has turned to gold. I can’t wait to see what the guy can do in the big league. Gracious, can you imagine if he were to turn Matt Murray back into THAT Matt Murray again? You know the Matt Murray I’m talking about.
From the Botterill quote, I think we are otherwise done with the big acquisitions. He makes a good point about Stephenson, though. If we get the Stephenson from the second half of last season all season long, that right there is a pretty major upgrade to the roster. But what are they going to do with all that cap space? They could definitely do some stuff at the trade deadline beyond just selling off expiring contracts. Or they could get guys new contracts before that time. I would not be opposed to an Eeli Tolvanen extension, for example. The team is getting tougher, and he is one of the toughest forwards they have.
Jordan Kyrou has a full no-trade clause, unlikely he would have waived that as I’m sure he’ll have far more attractive opportunities down the road. So, there was probably no trigger to pull to in the first place. Besides, they probably would have needed additional cap space, which would have required buying out Gru. And given GMJB’s ramblings and dissembling no doubt he would have been unwilling to take those debilitating $1.683mm cap hits beginning in 2027/28 – you know, when the salary cap will be $113.5mm+.
The Kyrou deal talk was before his trade protection kicked in on July 1st. There were no barriers. It was a fascinating proposition… but I think it was more than just this years eighth overall pick, which was as far a Friedman’s speculation went. St. Louis was going to want a “right now” player and almost certainly a center… which would have been too steep I think. Nice to hear Seattle is in on these conversations, but I don’t think that was really ever going anywhere. I do think, however, they’re still in on Robertson… the one in Dallas that is.
Okay then, But I’m trying to figure out WHO on a team (with 76 points last year) would have been off limits. Buffalo (I believe) wanted a center, so maybe we’re talking Matty Beniers and Shane Wright. IMHO MB is really a third line center on a playoff team. Shane Wright. I WANT SW to be the second coming of Patrice Bergeron (a comparison I make with annoying frequency) but maybe he’s just a solid 2L center on a playoff team. In either case trading for JK would have been an immediate talent upgrade – “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” kind of deal. And would have taken care of the upcoming glut at the center position, and in no way blocked the “youngsters” at the forward position – after this upcoming season ET, MM, JE, and JS are all free agents. JK is a twenty-seven YO GOAL SCORER, and if any two of Sale, Nyman, Firkus, or Rehkopf pan out it would have created a great nucleus of young forwards.
Last season’s team was a complete embarrassment, and their biggest weakness was at the forward position. Just ONE acquisition like JK would have enabled the Kraken to legitimately compete for a playoff spot without sacrificing the future in the slightest. And if the younger players pan out, they’d be an awesome team in the very near future.
As I’ve already said, the Kraken FO are slaves to convention and so timid they simply don’t have the guts to take even calculated risks to improve the team. RF’s tenure as GM at Seattle (and Carolina) has been described by one journalist as “milquetoast” and he’s right. And in a Western Conference with smart aggressive front offices (and just as good prospect pools) milquetoast will get you to the bottom in a very short time.
TFL,
Another great post; “As I’ve already said, the Kraken FO are slaves to convention and so timid they simply don’t have the guts to take even calculated risks to improve the team. RF’s tenure as GM at Seattle (and Carolina) has been described by one journalist as “milquetoast” and he’s right. And in a Western Conference with smart aggressive front offices (and just as good prospect pools) milquetoast will get you to the bottom in a very short time.”
In a “what have you done for me today” sentiment, we can forget the past and look at what the Kraken GM is doing now. To summarize the summer to date, GMJB acquired a 3L winger, gave up a 3L winger, acquired a 4L center, and gave up our 3R pick next season meaning the team cannot really play big in RFA offer sheets. He signed as a UFA a 2D/3D rated among the five worst UFA signings (https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/five-worst-nhl-signings-of-the-2025-off-season). And he did not buy out the statistically worst goalie in hockey, regardless of the financial impact, to demonstrate the team will not tolerate ongoing poor performance. But he signed a constantly injured goalie.
Net impact is at best zero and probably slightly negative, due to keeping around the anchor of Grubauer. The Kraken got nothing done on Peterka, Marner, or Kyrou. Coaching wise Lane Lambert seems like a distinctly blasé choice. One has to reach the conclusion that the Kraken will not seriously compete in the playoffs before 2028-29 and that assumes they have a lot more hits than misses in their prospect development. With Tambellini departing, the person that is hired will be the MOST important person in the organization regarding future success. Hopefully they find an emerging star.
You keep saying things that make it clear you don’t really know what you’re talking about. Kyrou trade was talked about before the NMC kicked in. A forward would have been going back in the trade. Your comments about the Gru buyout also show your ignorance. Did you not read the article? On top of there being no point to buy out a player if you don’t need the cap, there were no good backup options available on the goalie market.
It may be time to stop typing and start listening
RealityCheck… Are you the same guy that just spent two seasons trying to convince everyone that Gru was fine and Joey was awful? You sound just like that same name-switching moron who wants to pretend Kraken fans have “so much to learn”. Maybe that’s not you, maybe you’re some other half-wit that loves to fill themselves up with arrogance and ignorance. I know the type because I have a tendency to toe that same line. Seriously, understand this… you’re a joke, and folks on here that make arguments and use their names will always be more than your petty self.
But thanks for visiting…
Any more ad hominems you want to throw in there Daryl? I haven’t made any posts about Gru being better than Joey or Joey being trash. I’m sorry the RealityCheck above triggered you so much though. Nothing I said above is controversial… it’s just facts and the Gru content is even echoed by Darren. Usually you’re pretty level headed. Did you sleep bad last night?
Yep… it’s you.
Yes, a center would have been going back in the trade. Tough choice but worth doing, And if they were absolutely not interested in making the trade the whole Gru point doesn’t matter and they don’t need the cap space. The REAL point being the Kraken could have made the trade but chose not to a mistake IMHO. But about Gru – if you’re slurping the koolaid that says their new goalie coach/faith healer is going to do wonders; that’s fine but it’s irrelevant. No last place team’s fortunes hinge the performance of any backup goalie…
You have ZERO evidence they could have made the trade. Also funny seeing you try to spin your way out of this on Gru. Go read the article you replied to champ. There weren’t any better backup options out there. There’s also a reason we got Murray.
It’s your spin, sir. The point that “well no need to buyout Gru they because NOW they don’t need the cap space is technically true and I acknowlged that. Per Puckpedia, Kraken currently have ~ $9.2mm in cap space, they’ll need $4-$5mm for Kappo Kakko. The REAL point is if they wanted to make a trade for a top-line forward they would have needed to create cap space and buying out Gru would have accomplished that. But they didn’t so they don’t. And saying “well they don’t need the cap space so why bother” is simply an ex-post facto rationalization of that.
TFL, on the possibility of a Kyrou deal… I don’t know if there was ever a deal there and all Friedman said is they were in on it and it probably involved O’Brien. Armstrong is probably one of the toughest negotiators in the league. He sat on Tarasenko through a shoulder surgery, the expansion draft, and another season rather than take a bad deal. He also let Pietroangelo walk rather than give him a no-move. I don’t think they were gonna move him unless they figured they were “winning” the deal… and given the way you described Kyrou, I think that would have been a pretty big return.
I’d have been thrilled if the Kraken could have landed him, but I also have more faith in the plan than most. I think building down the middle is the way to go but it takes time. I also think they’re a couple seasons away and it’s too soon to cut bait on any of those centers, including O’Brien. I think teams are usually undermined by rushing their build and I’m afraid a Kyrou deal could have done just that.
Skilled centers have more value than wingers so I understand the logic, but they really need MB and SW to become legit, top level 1C/2C players for that to work. I reserve the right to be wrong, but don’t think MB fits that category. On trait common for all teams across all sports is they sometimes hang on too long to very high draft picks that aren’t meeting expections. It’s simply human nature as no one wants to admit spending valuable draft capital for a player who isn’t panning out.
I fear they could be doing this with MB. Next season is obvious critical. If he has another mediocre yearIf he’s really just a 3C he’d be untradeable – no one wants a 3C making $7mm/yr.
Regarding Jordan Kyrou, I read somewhere yesterday (thought it was an Eliot Friedman quote) stating “St. Louis wanted a “right now” player for JK and Seattle was unwilling to pull the trigger (that would be consistent with your point regarding O’Brien above). But now I can’t find it so I’ll have to take the L on that one.
No spin champ. They would have traded a forward back which would have freed the space for Kyrou. Time to go back to math class.
Well, you’re right about that. Wish they could have made that trade, they really need an upgrade like this.
The only thing Friedman actually mentioned as far as a Kyrou trade was he though it would have involved the No.8 pick – O’Brien, but where the Blues are, an NHLer makes sense also. I’m guessing with Armstrong, it was both. They – like most of the league – are looking for center help.
On Beniers and Wright… I 100% agree that teams fall in love with their prospects way too much, but I don’t think that’s what’s going on with Seattle. It’s obviously too soon to give up on Shane and he’s showing lots of promise. I think something that doesn’t get enough recognition on Beniers is just how good he is on the defensive end. That is something young centers coming into the NHL tend to struggle with and not only is Matty not struggling, he’s one of the better defensive centers in the league, period. He needs to score more, but when I hear about how many teams are looking for help down the middle, I think it’s a real possibility you trade that guy and spend a decade trying to find another guy just like him. A scoring winger on the other hand, those can be found.
In that same Friedman pod he talked about Seattle being loaded down the middle with young guys and he didn’t even bring up Catton. His take was, “a team can never have too many centers”… and I think that’s what the plan is.
Good points, we disagree on MB but that’s okay. I hope he does become THAT GUY. Glad you mentioned Catton – not unrealistic to think he’s their best prospect and could (eventually) be their best center. I live in fear he makes the roster this year and the team “experiments” by playing him at wing on the 4L. The danger being that next year he stays at wing permanently. I think he’d be a GREAT center, and a team lacking top level talent shouldn’t put their best prospect at his 2nd best position. Or maybe I’m just being paranoid…
Wow. Things get testy quickly in here. I love the passion.
Let’s just reflect on the reasons things stagnated the last two years.
1) Coaching was a serious issue. I won’t go into details, but it was. Kraken have endeavored as much as possible to fix that by getting a legit (and well respected league wide) hockey mind on the job.
2) Burakovsky was extremely disappointing and didn’t really fit. He’s gone.
3) The Kraken had difficulty competing consistently. We got Marchment, Lindgren and Gaudreau. League-wide known as compete guys.
4) Oleksiak has always been an enigma, inexplicably giving away possession with abandon. He has been relegated to 3P duties, with a coach who probably won’t hesitate to bench him.
5) Our prospect pool is extremely promising. Catton, O’Brien, Fiddler, Miettinen and Jugnauth all looked VERY impressive in the recent dev camp. Future is bright.
6) Gru has not met expectations, but we made coaching changes and signed Matt Murray.
7) Shane, Matty and Kakko all looked great last season, and project to be better. Gary Roberts told management to expect a bigger, stronger Shane Wright at camp.
What is everyone complaining about? You should be excited about the upcoming season.
Yep. Some in here just don’t live in reality. They like to complain about things they invented in their head. I will add on Oleksiak that Lambert’s more structured system should help him too. I think the same for Karts.
All good points above. I like that you mentioned Miettinen – I think he’s a very good prospect and seems to get overlooked (he was injured a big part of last year). I’ve seen him play (the TBirds) several times. His first year (23/24) he looked skilled for a big man; played with composure but seemed a bit passive. Last year (during playoffs) he was a real bully. Impossible to move from front of net; and routinely manhandling players behind the net and in the corners. Seems he’s developed the requisite nastiness to be an NHL player. If his skillset translates he could be a very good power forward.
For the immediate future, though, at least a couple of Nyman, Rehkopf, Sale and Firkus have to become at least 2L forwards for the Kraken’s master plan to work. Hope it does, but we’ll see.
Nyman may be a regular in the lineup this year. With Matty, Shane, Catton, Kakko and Nyman, that’s already five guys 19-24 yrs old. I don’t think any team serious about competing should have many more than that. Guys like Tavares (34yo, 38G, 74P) and Duchene (34yo, 30G, 82P) are still really valuable to have without having to run a kindergarten. I’m not sure Rehkopf, Sale or Firkus will ever play many Kraken games. Time will tell.
But I DO feel bullish on O’Brien, Fiddler, Miettinen and Villeneuve to start hitting the lineup in 3-5 years. The current wave of young guys will be 25-29, so it starts to make sense.
Anyone interested in Mason MacTavish? I know we have a glut of centers, but he’s young and improving every year. I think he can be had.
I think Ebs will stay on the 2nd line. I don’t see him as a bottom 6 winger.
I must say after seeing McBain’s contract 5x$4.25M with Utah, Kartye doesn’t feel like too much of an overpay. Especially if he gets back to rookie season numbers and continues to evolve his physical game.
What is the over/under on how many games Gru plays before Matt Murray is our full-time backup goalie. His AHL numbers were great last year and seems like his hip surgery was a success. It seems like that signing is not getting much attention but it seems like possibly the lowest risk / highest reward deal JB made this off season given how weak the goalie market was.
A lot of teams need a goalie right now, so it is pretty impressive we were able to get Murray signed.
I have little faith in Gru being a consistantly capable NHL goalie. I was highly disapointed when Botterill announced he was coming back. I was hoping the Kaken would buy out his last 2 years, sign Alex Lyon @ $1.5 million AAV for the same 2 yrs. He is very much an upgrade over Gru & would have made our goalie tandem better & allowed our skaters to play with more confidence in front of him. A cap savings of several million $ and an appreciable goalie upgrade. What a concept! I have more faith in James Reimer as our backup & his AAV was $1 million last season. Boist’s piece about Gru and the need for a better goalie his teamates can count on is spot on!
So I guess there is a new rule in the CBA that says a team can assign 1 19 year old player from the chl to the ahl?? Will this be an option for the 2025 season or just when the new CBA goes into effect? Would totally solve the Catton consternation around these parts.
No. Goes into effect 26/27. Does not help Catton.