Checking in on the Seattle Kraken Finnish prospects at the World Junior Championship

by Curtis Isacke | Dec 30, 2022 | Kraken Prospects

Three Seattle Kraken-affiliated prospects made rosters for their respective under-20 national teams for the IIHF World Junior Championship: Shane Wright for Team Canada and Jani Nyman and Niklas Kokko for Team Finland. After a couple pre-tournament games and a few group stage games, my focus will be to check in on Finns Kokko and Nyman. And if you stick around to the end, I’ll give a quick take on what I’ve seen from Wright as well.

With the appropriate amount of caution about overemphasizing the predicative importance of just a few tournament games, let’s dive in.

Niklas Kokko G

2022-23 Club Statistics

Team               League            GP       GAA     SV%    SO      Record

Kärpät             Liiga                1          0.00     .000     0          0-0-0

Hermes          Mestis             12        2.88     .904     1          3-6-3

2023 WJC Statistics

N/A

Analysis

Kokko hasn’t yet seen the ice for Finland, and probably will not don the Suomi blue for the remainder of the tournament either. He is the third goaltender on the roster and has not yet dressed.

That said, Kokko’s presence on the roster is itself remarkable. Finland is notorious for producing goaltenders. To rank among the top three under-20 players at the position for Finland is a strong endorsement of his club play, as well as his performance at Finland’s selection camp.

And Kokko may yet have a future as Finland’s No. 1 junior goalie. Kokko is still 18 years old and will be eligible for the 2024 World Junior Championship. The two goalies playing ahead of Kokko—Aku Koskenvuo (2021 Vancouver draftee) and Jani Lampinen—are both 19 years old and will be ineligible next season. Kokko’s presence on the roster this year suggests Team Finland views him as the lead contender to start next year.

All of this is impressive considering what we were saying about Kokko just six months ago. In my pre-draft analysis, I suggested the Kraken could look at drafting a goalie with one of their cluster of second-round picks. At the time, only two goaltenders were projected in that range on public boards: Tyler Brennan of Canada, who was No. 77 on the Sound Of Hockey Big Board, and Topias Leinonen of Finland, who was No. 86. Kokko was off the radar entirely, checking in at No. 293.  

Since the draft, however, Kokko has leapfrogged Leinonen not only in the mind of Team Finland, but also, apparently, in the eyes of many scouts. Scott Wheeler of The Athletic reported Kokko “always comes up in conversations with folks in Finland as the best goalie in this age group.” Impressive stuff for Kokko, even if we don’t see him on the ice.

Jani Nyman LW

2022-23 Club Statistics

Team                  League            GP       G         A        TP       PIM      +/-

Ilves U20          U20 SM-sarja  2          5          1         6          2          4                                                                                 

Ilves                     Liiga                21       7          3          10        2          -2

2023 WJC Statistics

Team                   League           GP      G         A        TP       PIM    +/-

Finland U20                 WJC-20         3          2          1          3          0          2                                                                                 

Finland U20 (all)         Int’l Exh.       5          5          5         10        2          8

Analysis

Just glancing at Jani Nyman (No. 22) on the ice at the World Juniors, you’d be excused if you thought you were looking at an adult dropped into a peewee league game. Every bit of 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he cuts an imposing, professional power-forward figure whenever he is on the ice. And he has frequently found offensive success by playing downhill directly through the defense.

But there is more to this left-shot winger than just his size. Skating regularly in Finland’s middle six, Nyman has three points (two goals and one assist) in three tournament games for Team Finland so far, tied for second on the team. He is also the team’s leading forward contributor by the “game score” metric tracked by Elite Prospects, which gives players credit for discrete game contributions, including shots, shot assists, zone entries, zone exits, and play break ups. This means he ranks ahead of the likes of Brad Lambert and Joakim Kemell. On top of that, Nyman is also the team’s second youngest player (born July 30, 2004).

Digging in on Nyman, it is his shot that stands out the most. He can deliver heavy wrist shots off the rush or cycle. Even more terrifying is Nyman’s slap shot. He patrols the right circle on Finland’s power play, which looks to overload the left side and then feed the puck back to Nyman for a one-timer.

Grabbing some post on the way to the back of the net, it’s a bit surprising that puck didn’t split in two.

Nyman has a scorer’s mentality. He is willing to drive to the net and force the play, regardless of the physical toll. He also has well-honed instincts for when to get to the difficult areas of the ice for a scoring chance.

Most importantly, he’s unafraid to put the puck on net from anywhere on the ice. I have not seen him squander a scoring chance on the hope of a better one. In this respect, his shooting package and approach reminds me a bit of Daniel Sprong, albeit from the left side. And like Sprong, I have little doubt that Nyman could score 20+ goals in the NHL in his prime if his other skills can keep him in the lineup.

Nyman is not an offensive playmaker in the sense of scanning the offensive zone, diagnosing, and finding an open teammate (like Shane Wright does, for example). But this does not particularly concern me because this not going to be Nyman’s role. He works well off of simpler cycles, net drives, and give-and-go exchanges. If he reaches his peak, he will be able to drive offensive success by physical forechecking along the boards and in the corners and power possession play. These traits are often overlooked, but not always undervalued by teams. A similar (though currently superior) skillset got Juraj Slafkovsky drafted No. 1 overall.

The offensive skillset leaves plenty to dream on. And Nyman is not without defensive skills either. He shows potential within Finland’s structured transition defense, stepping up to physically deny controlled zone entries. In the defensive zone, he can win board battles, close on his mark, and force the puck out of the defensive zone with physical play, even if he is not always setting up an offensive-minded breakout.

But there are at least two areas of concern for me, with one being a bright red flag for his NHL prospects. First, and perhaps less troubling, is his overall defensive effort, particularly on the backcheck. Nyman can rush like a freight train when Finland is playing downhill with possession. But the same urgency to defend the opposing rush just isn’t there most of the time. This is something that he needs to clean up or he could end up with a journeyman career like Sprong’s—that is, if Nyman even makes it that far.

My second—and more serious—concern is Nyman’s skating agility. He lacks NHL-level movement skills. He plays a bit stiff and hunched over, which limits his ability to rapidly react to passes or mirror opponents in coverage. His skating stride serves him in a straight line on the rush but is a major limitation in traffic or in a defensive posture. Will he be able to play fast enough to use his shot and physicality or will he be stuck chasing the play? The major caveat here is that I’ve only watched about 50 minutes of Nyman’s play in these international games, but based on what I’ve seen, I am concerned that, absent improvement, his skating will limit his chances to earn a role at the NHL level.

So, where does this leave us with Nyman? First, it is important to remember he is still young and is currently signed through 2023-24 with Liiga club team Ilves. So, the Finn has another year and a half to work on the rough areas of his game before any decision needs to be made about bringing him over to the United States.

Optimistically, the narrower North American ice surface (when compared with the wider international sheets used in Liiga) should allow Nyman to leverage his physicality and reach and incrementally decrease his mobility concerns. Pair that with hard-trained development of his four-way skating agility and you could have an effective defensive player proficient at denying zone entries and forcing the puck out of the defensive zone along the boards. And, on offense, you would have a legitimate top-six goal-scoring winger when paired with proper playmakers.

Pessimistically, he cannot overcome his mobility concerns and tops out as borderline AHL/NHL player for a few years before returning to Europe for the balance of his career.

If you want to watch Jani Nyman yourself, head over to the Deep Sea Hockey YouTube Channel and check out all of his shifts from his December 19, 2022, pre-tournament game against the United States and his December 26, 2022, group stage game against Switzerland.

Quick thoughts on Shane Wright

Shane Wright was named Team Canada’s captain and has been skating as the team’s first-line center. It’s hard to imagine a more integral or trusted position for a player. And, on paper, Wright has not disappointed. He is tied for third on the team with five points in three tournament games.

Digging past his statistics though, many of the same concerns that dogged him in the NHL have followed him to the WJC. Wright remains a strong shooter, of course. Wright’s ice vision and passing ability have continued to show up too. This is an ample skill set for a strong NHL career.

But if he is going to reach the level predicted for him pre-draft, he is going to need to gain confidence possessing the puck and driving offense. The puck almost never rests on his stick for more than a beat before Wright has moved it out. At the NHL level this could be attributed to Wright feeling out the level of play. But at the WJC, Team Canada needs Wright to take over the rush and quarterback an offense. Right now, he is more often deferring to his teammates, and his team’s scoring prospects are worse for it. It is troubling if Wright feels like he can’t keep up and control the pace of play at this (elite) junior level. Wright has just one even-strength assist. Canada needs more from him.

On the bright side, Wright has looked more physically comfortable at the WJC, engaging in contested puck battles while playing against similar-age competition. This is a promising sign for improved play on the forecheck over time.

Kraken Prospects: Tucker Robertson’s historic 9 seconds; CV’s arena debut; WJC

by Josh Horton | Dec 21, 2022 | Kraken Prospects

Tucker Robertson, a Seattle Kraken forward prospect, scored two goals in nine seconds, setting a franchise record for the Peterborough Petes (OHL). 

Robertson, 19, added an assist in the Petes’ 8-2 rout over Hamilton. 

The two goals nine seconds apart isn’t completely uncommon in hockey — the NHL record for fastest two goals scored by the same skater is four seconds — but it is rare. While no records for the OHL exist in the public domain — or any of the Canadian Hockey League, for that matter — goals scored nine seconds or less apart by the same skater has happened only 47 times since 1930. 

The fourth-round pick of the Kraken in 2022 is coming off a 81-point season in 2021-22 and is on a 75-point pace this season, with Robertson owning 15 goals and 19 assists through 31 games. 

While productive in the Ontario Hockey League for the past two seasons, Robertson has a complicated prospect profile. Presumably hampered by the OHL not playing a full season in the year before his draft eligibility in 2020-21, Robertson wasn’t taken in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. 

He blossomed into a point-per-game player in 2021-22, though, prompting the Kraken to take him 123rd overall this past summer as an overage player.

Lauded for his strong defensive instincts at the junior level, some evaluators aren’t confident it will translate to the pro level, while others are believers in that, as well as his burgeoning offensive game. 

The 2003-born prospect is eligible to join Coachella Valley in 2023-24 if the Kraken were to sign him, as he’ll be 20 years old next season.

Coachella Valley Firebirds win home opener

The long-awaited opening of Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, Calif., yielded an exciting “home opener” for the Coachella Valley Firebirds, as the Kraken’s AHL affiliate dispatched the Tucson Roadrunners, 4-3, on Sunday. 

Cameron Hughes scored the arena’s first ever goal on the power play, 11:11 into the game. It was only Hughes’ second of the season. The 26-year-old forward also contributed two assists in Acrisure’s debut. 

Noteworthy: Defense prospect Ryker Evans tallied an assist in the contest, his sixth assist in his last five games. Seattle’s second-round pick in 2021 is starting to make strides in production in the AHL. His six-game point streak was snapped Tuesday in Coachella Valley’s 3-2 loss against Tucson.

World Juniors pre-tournament starting up

The World Junior Championship, which begins on Dec. 26 in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, has commenced it’s pre-tournament phase. Here’s how the Kraken and local connections are faring so far. 

Wright, Zellweger taking on major roles with Canada

Shane Wright, the Kraken’s top pick in 2022, was announced as Team Canada’s captain for the tournament on Sunday. He celebrated the news by potting a pair of goals and chipping in an assist in the team’s pre-season tilt with Switzerland on Monday. 

Additionally, Olen Zellweger, a star for the Everett Silvertips and an Anaheim Ducks prospect, is quarterbacking Canada’s top power play and scored a goal with that unit. 

Jani Nyman and Finland fall to US

Jani Nyman, a second-round pick for the Kraken in 2022, played on Finland’s third line for their exhibition versus the U.S. on Monday. Finland lost the game 5-2. Sound Of Hockey’s Curtis Isacke broke down every one of Nyman’s shifts:

Noteworthy: Kraken goaltender Niklas Kokko was not suited up for the game. One of three goalies taken by Finland to the tournament, we’ll see if the second-round pick in 2022 gets any ice time or earns the starting nod for Finland. 

Stay hot, David Goyette

A four-assist outing against Oshawa brought Kraken prospect David Goyette’s point total to 14 in his last five games. He’s been very efficient, too, scoring on 30 percent of his shots over that period. 

Kyle Jackson keeps streaking

Kraken forward prospect Kyle Jackson extended his point streak to 12 games over the weekend with three goals and three assists in three contests. Jackson, 20, has been one of Seattle’s most productive prospects in the system, with 29 points in his last 20 games and 10 points in his last five games. 

Kraken Prospects: Kole Lind records 2nd hat trick of season

by Josh Horton | Dec 14, 2022 | Kraken Prospects

When Kole Lind scores goals, they tend to come in bunches — at least that’s been the case this season.

The Kraken forward prospect notched a hat trick, his second of the season, during Coachella Valley’s 8-3 victory over the San Jose Barracuda on Dec. 10.

Lind’s goal-scoring outbrust came in the Firebirds’ fifth consecutive win, which was eventually snapped the next night in a 5-4 overtime loss to Bakersfield.

Lind, 24, leads Coachella Valley with 10 goals on the season and is third on the team in points with 20. He also leads the team in penalty minutes with 35.

The Shaunavon, Saskatchewan native, who starred for the Kelowna Rockets of the WHL during his junior career, figures to be one of the next forwards up in case Seattle needs to call up a forward. The second-round pick played in 23 games for the Kraken last year, scoring two goals and tallying eight assists.

With how the Kraken’s lineup looks currently, and with Eeli Tolvanen recently claimed off waivers from Nashville, it will likely take an injury for Lind to break the Kraken lineup. However, it’s certainly encouraging to see Lind producing at the AHL level in the meantime.

New arena opening in Coachella Valley

Speaking of Lind and the Firebirds, Coachella Valley will play its first game in its new home rink, Acrisure Arena, on Sunday, Dec. 18, against the Tucson Roadrunners. The Firebirds, who recently concluded a 16-game road trip, practiced on the new arena’s ice for the first time on Monday. The Desert Sun has the full story.

World Junior Championship update

Team Canada released its final roster for the 2023 World Junior Championship, and it came with little surprise. Shane Wright, who was loaned to Canada for the tournament, which begins on Dec. 26 in Moncton, New Brunswick and Halifax, Nova Scotia, unsurprisingly made the team and is expected to star for Canada.

Additionally, all of the local connections that started camp with the team made the final roster. Seattle Thunderbirds forward Reid Schaefer was particularly excited.

Finland is another team to watch for Seattle fans. Forward Jani Nyman and goaltender Niklas Kokko, both second-round picks last year, will play for the Finns.

Nyman, who has seven goals and 10 points for Ilves in Liiga — Finland’s top league — this season, is expected to play a big role for a strong froward group. It will be ineresting to see if Kokko will earn the starting job for Finland between the pipes.

Kyle Jackson piling up points

Kyle Jackson, the Kraken’s seventh-round draft pick in 2022, is on a nice little stretch for the Ontario Hockey League’s North Bay Battalion. The 20-year-old forward is riding a nine-game point streak and has notched at least two points in seven of those contests.

Jackson boasts 37 points with 17 goals in 29 games this season.

North Bay is a team to monitor for Kraken fans, as defense prospect Ty Nelson also plays for North Bay. The third-round pick’s 35 points rank third amongst OHL defensemen and amongst his North Bay teammates.

Kraken Prospects: Joey Daccord makes CV history, Shane Wright loaned to Team Canada

by Josh Horton | Dec 8, 2022 | Kraken Prospects

Joey Daccord made history for Seattle’s American Hockey League affiliate by recording the first shutout for Coachella Valley on Dec. 2. It took just 16 games for this bit of history to be made for the Firebirds, which debuted this season as Seattle’s top farm team. 

Daccord, 26, turned away 26 shots in the effort. 

The North Andover, Mass., native is the next man up on the Kraken’s goaltender depth chart and has played well as of late. After a slow start to the year, Daccord boasts a .925 save percentage in his last seven games played — his season percentage sits at .915. 

Daccord was third in the AHL last year with a .925 save percentage for Charlotte, which Seattle shared with Florida as its top affiliate in 2021-22. 

One of the looming questions surrounding Daccord is whether or not he’ll bloom into an NHL goalie or remain a more than capable AHL starter. Although Daccord is 26 and hasn’t broken into the NHL full-time, the door isn’t shut for him.

There are several examples of goaltenders, more recently with players like St. Louis’ Jordan Binnington and Seattle’s Chris Driedger, that needed several years of seasoning in the minors before getting a real shot. 

However, currently blocked by Martin Jones and Philipp Grubauer, Daccord needs either an injury or a change of heart on the Kraken’s goaltending tandem to receive his chance — at least this year. 

For now, we’ll track Daccord’s progress in the AHL and see if he puts any pressure on the Kraken front office. 

Shane Wright scores in first game back, World Juniors next

Wright, fresh off a conditioning stint with Coachella Valley, scored in his first game back with the Seattle Kraken, a 4-2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday. Scoring a goal against the Canadiens, who famously snubbed Wright by not taking him No. 1 overall in the 2022 NHL Draft, had to have felt great. 

Up next for Wright: The World Junior Championship. Many people expected that step in Wright’s development plan, and the Kraken officially announced Thursday that he’s set to report to Moncton.

We’ll see what lies ahead once Wright returns from international duty, but this is a great call by Seattle. It gives Wright another opportunity to shine on a big stage, and it allows the Kraken to delay their decision on whether to burn the first year of his entry-level contract this season. Remember, they can still theoretically return him to the OHL without using that first contract year, up until he has played nine NHL games. Wright has played eight so far, so the decision will have to come soon after he gets back from the WJC.

Team Canada camp starts now, and the tournament runs Dec. 26 through Jan. 5.

Jagger Firkus, Ty Nelson left off Canada’s WJC roster, but plenty of other local flavor

Unfortunately, Wright will be the only Kraken prospect at the World Juniors for Team Canada.

Kraken prospects Jagger Firkus and Ty Nelson won’t play for Team Canada at the World Junior Championship, which starts Dec. 26 and will be played in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Moncton, New Brunswick. Both skated with Team Canada’s junior team this summer but weren’t ultimately picked for its selection camp. 

The roster does feature five players and one coach with ties to the Puget Sound area’s two WHL teams: Seattle’s Kevin Korchinski (defenseman, Blackhawks prospect), Nolan Allan (defenseman, Blackhawks), Reid Schaefer (forward, Oilers), and Thomas Milic (goalie); and Everett’s Olen Zellweger (defenseman, Ducks) and Dennis Williams (head coach). 

Team Finland will also be a team to keep an eye on. Scott Wheeler of The Athletic projects Kraken forward prospect Jani Nyman and goalie Niklas Kokko.

We won’t quote what Wheeler said about Kokko because it’s behind a paywall, but if you’re a subscriber we recommend taking a peak. 

Spotlight: David Goyette

David Goyette, the last of the Kraken’s four second-round picks in the 2022 NHL Draft, is fresh off his best statistical game of the season, notching a five-point night that included a pair of goals for the Sudbury Wolves on Sunday.

The 18-year-old center boasts 34 points (17 goals) in 24 games in the Ontario Hockey League this season. 

Seattle Kraken prospect update: Shane Wright lighting up AHL

by Josh Horton | Nov 30, 2022 | Kraken Prospects

The Seattle Kraken’s treatment of Shane Wright, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft and one of the franchise’s prized prospects, has been equally intriguing, confusing, or, depending on how you feel about the situation, frustrating. 

But this past weekend was an encouraging one for Wright, who potted four goals in the first three games of a conditioning stint with the Coachella Valley Firebirds, Seattle’s AHL affiliate. 

Curiously enough, Wright didn’t tally a single assist in those three games, as one of his best skills is creating opportunities for teammates — he demonstrated that by tallying 63 assists in 62 games for the Kingston Frontenacs in the Ontario Hockey League last season. However, Wright playing meaningful minutes, and scoring, is a positive development for the rookie forward, who struggled to crack the lineup after breaking camp with the Kraken.

“We just felt it was right to give him the opportunity to get some games,” Seattle general manager Francis told the Got Yer’ Back podcast, hosted by Pierre Lebrun and Ryan Rishaug. “He’s done that, played three games, he’s had four goals, he’s displayed an elite release on his shot. I think overall his game is getting better.” 

Due to the CHL-NHL agreement, Wright can’t play the entire season for the Firebirds, and this 14-day conditioning stint will conclude after Coachella Valley’s pair of contests against the Henderson Silver Knights on Dec. 2 and Dec. 3. 

What happens after that? Wright will return to the Kraken and could be loaned to Canada’s World Junior Championship team, as first reported by Darren Dreger of TSN. Canada’s selection camp begins on Dec. 9, and the tournament concludes on Jan. 1. 

Kraken general manager Ron Francis mentioned on the Got Yer’ Back Podcast that the World Juniors are a possibility. 

“He’ll play two more this weekend in Henderson Friday and Saturday before getting recalled, and then our plan is to get him in the lineup [for Seattle], and then we’ll make a decision on the World Juniors at that point,” Francis said. “That is an opportunity that is on the table for him to go there and play for Canada, and if we do that, that pushes the decision [of what to do with Wright for the rest of the season] down the road until January.” 

If Wright goes to the World Juniors, the Kraken will have a big decision on their hands once the tournament is over. Based on the aforementioned CHL-NHL agreement, Wright can play in nine NHL games before he’s either sent back to the OHL or a year on his entry-level contract is burned. The Burlington, Ontario, Canada native has played seven games for the Kraken so far. 

It’s been a turbulent rookie season for Wright, whose prospect pedigree, and the hype that comes along with that, has put a lot of attention on the 18-year-old forward and how Seattle has handled him. Wright was frequently a healthy scratch for the Kraken before joining Coachella Valley.

“I know from the outside, people have a lot of opinions and speculation,” Francis said, “But internally we’ve had those discussions, and everybody understands what we’re trying to do and everyone understands we have Shane’s best interests at heart here, and obviously the more we help him, the more it helps everybody.” 

Francis has found loopholes to punt this decision as far down the road as possible before having to decide on Wright’s fate this season. As for burning the first year of his entry-level contract, Francis told Got Yer’ Back he’s not too concerned with that, referring back to how Seattle was willing to do that with Matty Beniers at the end of the 2021-22 season. 

“It’s there on the horizon, but it’s not the deciding factor on whether keep him or send him back at some point,” Francis said. 

Jacob Melanson on torrid pace

Jacob Melanson, Seattle’s fifth-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, has been one of the Kraken’s hottest prospects as of late. The Acadie-Bathurst forward has 10 points in his last five games and 19 points in his last 10 games in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. 

Melanson has scored nearly a goal per game, with 17 in 18 contests this year. 

Jagger Firkus continues long point streak

With a goal on Tuesday night, Kraken forward prospect Jagger Firkus extended his point streak to 18 games. Firkus, a second-round pick in 2022, has 13 goals and 14 assists during that stretch. 

The release on that shot, my goodness.