Down on the Farm – Rangers claim Tye Kartye, Kraken re-sign two forwards

This is “Down on the Farm,” your weekly Seattle Kraken prospects update. This week, we’ll have a little bit more of an NHL focus, but all of it pertains to the team’s young players and future roster. We’ll analyze the decision to waive Tye Kartye and where things stand after the New York Rangers claimed the young forward. We’ll also discuss the Kraken signings of forwards Ben Meyers and Ryan Winterton. Finally, we’ll share some thoughts on the Kraken’s trade assets heading into next week’s trade deadline.

After that, we’ll have all of the usual stuff—Kraken prospect news, video, and data updates, the Sound Of Hockey Prospect of the Week, and a preview of the week ahead.

If you have a Seattle Kraken prospect–related question you’d like to see featured in a future column or answered in our next mailbag (ahem, maybe next week? or the week after if there if we see an active deadline), drop us a note below or on X or BlueSky at @deepseahockey or @sound_hockey.

Kraken re-sign Ben Meyers and Ryan Winterton to two-year deals

Ben Meyers, 27, signs two-year, $1,000,000 average annual value (AAV) extension

On Feb. 24, the Seattle Kraken announced that the team had extended forward Ben Meyers. Before signing, Meyers was a pending unrestricted free agent this summer.

Meyers has five goals and six assists in 33 NHL games this season. He has brought skill and strong skating to a fourth-line center role, ranking near the very top of the league in average skating speed and in the 82nd percentile in maximum skating speed, according to NHL Edge. He is also third among forwards on the Kraken in shorthanded time on ice per game played.

Meyers has talked about how the Kraken were one of the teams that strongly pursued him when he was coming out of the University of Minnesota in 2022, before he signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Colorado Avalanche on April 13, 2022. (The Kraken were active in the amateur free agent market that year, signing Tye Kartye to an entry-level deal on Mar. 1, 2022. More on him in a moment.) Meyers re-signed with Colorado on a one-year, minimum deal for the 2023–24 season, before taking successive one-year, minimum deals with Seattle.

This is Meyers’s first standard contract for multiple years and above the league minimum. It puts him at the front of the group vying to provide depth contributions for the Kraken in the years ahead (i.e., somewhere between the team’s 11th and 13th forward). He’s a great player to have in that role.

Ryan Winterton, 22, signs two-year, $1,125,000 AAV extension

Also on Feb. 24, the Kraken announced an extension for forward Ryan Winterton. Winterton was scheduled to be a restricted free agent without arbitration rights this summer, so his return on some type of deal was always highly probable. He will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights after the expiration of this contract.

Winterton has been a chess piece that Coach Lane Lambert has been able to move up and down the lineup without any significant drop-off in production. When he moves up in the lineup, his speed, defense, and forechecking play. When he’s on the fourth line, it hums. In 81 fourth-line minutes when Jacob Melanson, Ben Meyers, and a third winger not named Ryan Winterton have been out there, the group is minus-two and approximately even in shot quality share. Add in Winterton and the group surges: plus-one, with a 64 percent shot quality share in 51 minutes. Winterton has been a bottom-six play driver.

Flashing back to training camp, I think there were some nerves about which way it would go for Winterton. Would he get stuck in no-man’s land between a good AHL player and an NHL regular? Yet he made the team out of camp, and as we moved into the season, the Kraken repeatedly made difficult roster decisions rather than taking the easy way out and sending the (then) waivers-exempt Winterton down to the AHL. He was an NHL player in the team’s eyes. Winterton has rewarded that confidence and should be a building-block, defense-and-forechecking third- or fourth-line forward for years to come.

Tye Kartye waived by Kraken and claimed by the Rangers

The progression of Winterton and Meyers, as well as the arrival of hard-charging fourth-line winger Jacob Melanson, 22, created a squeeze for playing time at the bottom of the roster. The player who fell to the bottom of the list and often became a healthy scratch in recent months was 24-year-old winger Tye Kartye.

Kartye endeared himself to fans with a friendly personality off the ice and hard hits and timely goals on it. Unfortunately for Kartye, the on-ice production was just too inconsistent. There would be flashes, but also long dry spells. (Any player would prefer to be in the NHL. In hindsight, however, I wonder if some of Kartye’s offensive potential was sapped by earning a fourth-line role “early” and not getting another AHL season of featured-scorer reps.)

When the team activated Berkly Catton and Ben Meyers from injured reserve on Feb. 25, it needed to create a roster spot. The Kraken had three options: (1) reassign Melanson to the AHL (waivers-exempt); (2) waive one of the depth defensemen, Cale Fleury or Josh Mahura; or (3) waive Kartye.

In a choice among bad options, I understand the Kraken’s thinking in opting to waive Kartye. The Kraken believed that Melanson could provide more than Kartye in a fourth-line role this season, as evidenced by the fact that Melanson consistently played over Kartye in the last couple of months. At the same time, waiving a defenseman was likely unappealing because the team needs the depth there—particularly if Jamie Oleksiak is moved in a deal at the deadline.

That forced the team’s hand in exposing Kartye to waivers. Seattle’s loss was the New York Rangers’ gain, as the Blueshirts claimed Kartye off waivers on Friday, Feb. 27.

While many will (rightly) focus on Melanson passing Kartye on the depth chart, the Kraken also “chose” Meyers over Kartye. Before Meyers’s extension, he would have been another candidate to go on waivers. The team (correctly, in my view) determined that Meyers (on his new deal) was more valuable than Kartye (on his deal). Hence, Meyers and Melanson stay while Kartye goes.

Kraken asset value heading into the trade deadline

Believe it or not, the trade deadline is just seven days (and three Kraken games) away. Earlier this week, John Barr gave a primer on the team’s potential approaches, and then the Sound Of Hockey team convened to give our opinions on preferred paths.

The team has the following draft assets over the next two years:

The team’s other notable trade assets under 23 years old include forwards Shane Wright, 22; Jagger Firkus, 21; Jani Nyman, 21; Julius Miettinen, 20; Berkly Catton, 20, and Jake O’Brien, 18; and defenseman Blake Fiddler, 18.

There has been a lot of speculation about Wright in recent weeks. I’ve given my view of his value on the Sound Of Hockey Podcast and elsewhere. I’d be disinclined to trade Wright for Jordan Kyrou straight up. It’s close, though. I think fair-minded arguments could be made in either direction.

I have seen media speculation suggesting the fair cost for Kyrou would be Wright plus multiple other assets. I strongly disagree with that. Kyrou is a very, very good player, but packages like that should be reserved for the next echelon of player, such as Jason Robertson or Robert Thomas. If this is Wright’s market value, the team should rest easy keeping him.

To my knowledge, I don’t think anyone has actually reported that the Kraken offered Wright for Artemi Panarin. (This is likely because the Kraken never got to the point of making an offer, as Panarin indicated he wasn’t willing to sign in Seattle.) That said, if the Kraken were willing to go there, I probably would have been critical of that deal.

What should the Kraken do at the deadline? Let us know in the comments below.

Notes on four Kraken prospects

Julius Miettinen | F | Everett Silvertips (WHL)

Julius Miettinen reached 100 career assists in the WHL this week. His 1.40 points per game ranks 12th in the WHL. His +48 on-ice plus-minus is sixth in the WHL and second among forwards, one behind linemate Matias Vanhanen. He continues to show a pro-ready combination of skills. With Everett’s strength, it seems unlikely we’ll see a pro debut for Miettinen at the end of this year, but he should be a fixture in the Coachella lineup from day one next season.

Oscar Fisker Mølgaard | F | Coachella Valley Firebirds (AHL)

Mølgaard returned from his successful stint at the Olympics to score a goal in his only AHL game this week. Taken together, that work is enough to earn Mølgaard Sound Of Hockey Prospect of the Week in an otherwise quiet week. (Just don’t think about the timeline too much; Mølgaard deserves recognition.)

See more

birds goooaaalll!!! pic.twitter.com/2kWsdUZomp

— Coachella Valley Firebirds (@Firebirds) February 27, 2026

Alexis Bernier | D | Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL)

Bernier continued his scoring ways last week, adding another goal and an assist in three games. His role is smaller on the stacked Chicoutimi Saguenéens roster. He doesn’t see the ice on the power play, and his penalty kill time is rotational rather than foundational. Even so, he is taking advantage of his opportunities. He has four goals and three assists in 11 games and has an even or better on-ice plus-minus in 10 of those 11 games. Check out his shifts from the Saguenéens’ Feb. 20, 2026, game below.

Nikke Kokko | G | Coachella Valley Firebirds (AHL)

Goalie Nikke Kokko returned from a six-week injury to back up Victor Ostman on Friday, Nov. 20. Kokko then grabbed his first start on the second night of the back-to-back on Saturday, Nov. 21, against the Colorado Eagles. He faced 44 shots on goal and turned away 40 for a solid .909 save percentage. It wasn’t enough, though, as the Firebirds fell to the Eagles 6–3 after a couple of empty-netters. More importantly, Kokko made it through the entire game.

Kraken prospects data update

Jake O’Brien had three goals and three assists in three games this week, but the Bulldogs struggled when he was on the ice at even strength. Despite O’Brien’s individual scoring production, the team was minus-seven with O’Brien on the ice at even strength.

J.R. Avon also returned from a lengthy injury absence over the last week and tallied an assist in three games. With 10 total assists on the season, Avon has matched his previous professional career high, set in 60 games last season. He has played only 24 games this year.

Ostman had a Jekyll-and-Hyde week, posting a shutout against the Eagles on Friday, Feb. 20, only to give up six goals against the Henderson Silver Knights on Thursday, Feb. 26.

Semyon Vyazovoi had a strong seven-day stretch, winning two of three starts and posting a .917 save percentage in the process. He continues to rank among the KHL’s league leaders.

Sound Of Hockey Prospect of the Week tracker

3: Jagger Firkus, Kim Saarinen

2: Jake O’Brien, Julius Miettinen, Nathan Villeneuve, Semyon Vyazovoi

1: Alexis Bernier, Barrett Hall, Ollie Josephson, Tyson Jugnauth, Nikke Kokko, Oscar Fisker Mølgaard, Logan Morrison, Victor Ostman, Zaccharya Wisdom

Previewing the week ahead

This week’s Deep Sea Hockey Game of the Week is a Saturday morning opportunity to catch Kraken prospect Zeb Forsfjall in action in the SHL on FloHockey.

Tracking 2026 NHL Draft prospects: Carson Carels

Carson Carels is an athletic, skilled 6-foot-2, left-shot defenseman for the Prince George Cougars in the WHL. His 1.20 points per game are the most among first-time draft-eligible WHL defensemen. Well regarded within Canadian circles, he earned a spot on Canada’s 2026 World Juniors squad at 17 years old. Scouts credit his skating and two-way skill through the neutral zone as carrying traits.

He may not project as a true high-end player either offensively or defensively, but the all-around package should land him near the top of an NHL lineup down the road. Carels ranked No. 7 on the midseason Big Board.

Recent prospect updates

February 20, 2026: David Goyette suspended for 20 games

February 13, 2026: Projecting NHL futures for Logan Morrison and Jagger Firkus

February 6, 2026: Seattle Kraken prospects midseason mailbag

January 30, 2026: Kraken prospect trade value tiers

January 23, 2026: Alexis Bernier set to return, early 2026 NHL Draft thoughts

January 16, 2026: Jacob Melanson is speeding toward an NHL future despite the demotion

January 9, 2026: World Juniors reports, CHL trades

January 2, 2026: Mid-season Kraken prospect ranking