Welcome back to Friday Film Room, our offseason Seattle Kraken prospects series here at Sound Of Hockey. Today, we’ll look at gameplay video, data, and analysis of forward Casey Mutryn, the No. 38 overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, and defenseman Tyson Jugnauth, a prospect from the 2022 draft who has taken a circuitous route to a significant role with the Coachella Valley Firebirds and NHL relevance.
If you like these breakdowns, stop by every Friday because we’ll cover two prospects per week (one 2026 Kraken draft pick and one other organization prospect) until Kraken players are back on the ice for training camp this fall.
Any suggestions or questions for future posts? Please let us know below or on social media at @deepseahockey or @sound_hockey.
Casey Mutryn | Winger | Boston College Eagles (NCAA)
Profile: Right shot | 18 years old | 6-foot-3 | 203 lbs | 2026 Seattle Kraken second-round pick (unsigned)
Summary: Casey Mutryn’s game is built around relentless effort, physicality, and hard skill along the boards and at the net front. He creates offense by protecting pucks under pressure, moving play from the perimeter into dangerous areas, and finding teammates through traffic. He works well in cycles and can execute pro-caliber passing sequences.
His effective forechecking, defensive awareness, and puck-retrieval ability give him a high NHL floor. Flashes of creativity and offensive processing hint at even more upside. Areas for development include some technical and mechanical skating aspects, as well as improving his shot efficiency and finishing skills.
Video: Mutryn is a right-shot forward wearing No. 12 in white.
Strengths:
Very good athlete, projectable frame (6-foot-3), and from an athletic family (brother Teddy was drafted by San Jose).
Relentless forechecker with an elite motor and consistent second efforts.
Recognized by teammates and coaching staff as a leader off the ice; was captain for Team USA at the 2026 U18 World Championship.
Powerful, physical, hard-to-play-against presence who finishes checks effectively.
Excellent at getting the puck off the boards and making plays in the center lane with vision and touch.
Strong puck protection using size, strength, and reach.
Can create space for himself to make plays with the puck through a combination of tight-area skating and physicality.
Exceptional in puck-battle scenarios, winning consistently.
Reliable defensive habits, backchecking, and penalty-killing value.
Good hockey sense with quick puck movement and strong “head-up” scanning habits.
Shows diverse passing skills to create offense, including one-touches, deceptive looks, and cross-seam distribution.
Drives the middle lane regularly to create offense off the puck.
Willing and effective net-front presence, capable of screening, deflections, and rebound creation.
Straight-line speed and power allow him to pressure defenders and separate with space.
Flashes transition ability to match his power-forward cycling skills in the offensive zone.
Adaptable, complementary player capable of fitting multiple lineup roles.
Weaknesses:
Though his skating has not hindered him yet and is solid for a power player his size, his mechanics could use refinement to improve recovery and four-way agility.
Skating can lack explosiveness from a standstill and in lateral movement.
Needs to add more mass and strength to his frame to translate his hard skills to the professional level, and needs to do so without further hindering his skating.
His point production has not been indicative of an impact offensive player; he can disappear from the scoresheet for stretches despite significant physical skills.
Can default to linear power attacks instead of creating better offensive options.
Needs to leverage his ability to carry possession and dictate play more consistently.
It remains to be determined whether he has the processing speed under pressure to create plays at the professional level.
Finishing ability and shot are below average at this stage and remain secondary to his playmaking.
More of a complementary offensive piece than a primary puck mover or play driver.
Ceiling depends on continued skating development and more frequent offensive execution.
System rank: 5-10 (projected NHL role player).
Notes: Casey Mutryn projects as a power-oriented, two-way winger who can complement teammates up or down the lineup and contribute on the penalty kill. He brings hard skill at the net and along the boards, as well as puck-retrieval ability, to go with defensive chops and some playmaking through traffic. The floor appears to be very high.
Mutryn looked like he could still grow into his 6-foot-3 frame a bit more at Development Camp, and he will get that opportunity while playing an NCAA schedule with access to NCAA fitness and training resources this season. His upside depends on simultaneous physical maturation and skating technique development.
This would fully unleash his ample athleticism and realize his power-forward scoring potential, which has been more hypothetical than actual to date. He has not yet broken out as an offensive player, and I wonder if he will get the opportunity to do that in the short term, given this significant leap in competition.
Tyson Jugnauth | Defenseman | Coachella Valley Firebirds (AHL)
Profile: Left shot | 22 years old | 5-foot-11 | 183 lbs | 2022 Seattle Kraken fourth-round pick (signed)
Summary: Tyson Jugnauth is an instinctual and offensively gifted puck-moving defenseman. He strives to control the flow of the game with efficient retrievals, breakouts, and sustained offensive possession. With the puck on his stick, he is deceptive and intelligent in his distribution. He can also manipulate defenders with changes of pace in transition and agile blue-line movements. He deploys various body positions and fakes to create outlet opportunities after retrieving the puck. He has an effective shot from the blue line, getting the puck through layers for goals, rebounds, and shot passes. When he roves into the offensive zone, his playmaking and shot play up even further with a forward-like skill level. He projects to run a power-play unit at the NHL level.
That said, when Jugnauth is not controlling possession, he has limited defensive value, particularly in the defensive zone. Jugnauth shows inconsistent engagement, spotty defensive instincts, and average skating explosiveness. Coupled with limited stature (5-foot-11) and physicality, Jugnauth’s projection as an NHL regular remains to be determined.
Video: Jugnauth is a left-shot defenseman wearing No. 43 in white.
Strengths:
Very good awareness and playmaking ability from the blue line.
Excellent deception skills, using eyes, body positioning, and stick movement to manipulate opponents.
Strong transition game with clean breakouts, controlled zone entries, and accurate long-range passes.
Consistently identifies teammates as passing options, including cross-ice and high-danger inside feeds.
Effective at walking the blue line and creating shooting lanes through lateral movement.
Good hockey sense and anticipation, especially when reading passing lanes.
Comfortable activating offensively and joining rushes as an extra attacker.
Good at changing pace to create separation despite lacking top-end explosiveness.
Displays confidence handling the puck under pressure and making creative plays.
Shows power-play upside due to vision, puck distribution, and ability to open seams.
Has worked hard, making sacrifices and difficult off-ice choices (including leaving college to return to junior) in an effort to advance his career; seemingly has the necessary off-ice desire to make it.
Affable personality would seem to be a positive and well suited to professional stresses.
Has made solid improvements in his physicality since turning pro.
Weaknesses:
Despite some steps in his physical development, he’s still slight in build, and it will never be an area of advantage.
Lack of height (5-foot-11) and reach limits his potential defensive impact.
Defensive game remains underdeveloped and difficult to project as adequate at the NHL level; he needs to avoid defending as much as possible.
Lacks explosiveness and closing speed when defending faster attackers.
Skating stride and acceleration are only average, limiting recovery ability and gap control.
Needs to improve defensive engagement, particularly along the boards and in one-on-one battles.
Limited awareness and success when engaged at the net front.
Can watch the puck at times and miss developing threats away from the play.
Defensive-zone reads and coverage responsibilities require refinement for higher levels of play.
Offensive creativity can lead to risky decisions and turnovers.
Could continue to improve his ability to draw defenders and create space at higher pace levels.
System rank: 5-10 (projected NHL role player).
Notes: Last summer, Jugnauth demonstrated his commitment to improving his game and taking his conditioning seriously. He then earned offensive deployments and a second-unit power-play quarterback role in his first professional season. The productivity was impressive. He led all AHL rookie defensemen in assists (36) and points (45) and was named to the AHL All-Rookie Team.
That said, Jugnauth does not play impactful in-zone defense. He looks to avoid defending with clean retrievals and possession control. It’s an approach that can succeed in the NHL in a sheltered role if the defensive aspects can materialize at least a bit more. That has to be the focus in his second professional season. With incremental gains in that area, a Shayne Gostisbehere-type career is not out of the question.
His profile (undersized, average-skating defenseman) has the most difficult path to NHL minutes. A team will need to have a role in mind for him, complementary blue-line pieces around him, and the commitment to stick with him through inevitable defensive challenges. If a team can do that, I wouldn’t be surprised if it is rewarded with a solid NHL career.
Curtis is a Sound Of Hockey contributor and member of the Kraken press corps. Curtis is an attorney by day, and he has read the NHL collective bargaining agreement and bylaws so you don’t have to. He can be found analyzing the Kraken, NHL Draft, and other hockey topics on Twitter and Bluesky @deepseahockey.
Welcome to Friday Film Room, our offseason Seattle Kraken prospects series here at Sound Of Hockey. Today, we’ll look at gameplay video, data, and analysis of Finn Kearns, an off-the-radar 2026 fifth-round pick, and Carson Rehkopf, a high-profile forward prospect who played for the Coachella Valley Firebirds last season.
If you like these breakdowns, stop by every Friday because we’ll cover two prospects per week (one 2026 Kraken draft pick and one other organization prospect) until Kraken players are back on the ice for camp this fall.
Any suggestions or questions for future posts? Please let us know below or on social media at @deepseahockey or @sound_hockey.
Finn Kearns | Defenseman | Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
Profile: Left-shot | 18 years old | 6-foot-3 | 212 lbs | 2026 Seattle Kraken fifth-round pick (unsigned)
Summary: Finn Kearns’ game is built around physicality. He is a big, imposing shutdown defenseman who leverages his strength, reach, and punishing contact to produce. At his best, he disrupts plays with heavy hits, strong net-front coverage, and effective gap engagement, while showing enough mobility to project as a defensive specialist at higher levels. Although he flashes competent puck-carrying ability and escape skating, his puck-moving consistency, skating pace, and offensive impact are limited at this stage.
Kearns is still raw, relatively untested, and underdeveloped compared with his draft-class peers, having spent most of his draft season playing prep hockey. He is a long-term development project with the size and enough skating ability to become a dependable defensive defenseman.
Video: Kearns is the left-shot defenseman wearing No. 2 in green.
Strengths:
Elite physical presence at lower levels of competition; delivered heavy, game-changing hits regularly.
Excellent size, strength, and reach to deny space and separate opponents from the puck.
Good mobility for his frame, with flashes of solid edgework and escape skating.
Flashed strong defensive instincts and positional awareness.
Effective at denying zone entries at the blue line and defending the net front.
Capable of closing plays along the boards with physicality before making simple, effective outlet passes.
Willing, competitive defender who embraces a shutdown role and mentality.
Showed a useful, heavy point shot at the prep school level.
Physicality and an on-the-edge playing style (163 penalty minutes in 53 prep games during his draft season) bring “identity” potential in the mold of Jeremy Lauzon.
Scouts indicate Kearns is team-oriented, self-aware about the strengths and weaknesses of his game, and a hard worker.
Long-term developmental upside due to his physical tools and defensive foundation.
Weaknesses:
Adequate four-way mobility will need to take steps to be pro-ready.
Linear skating lacks explosiveness and could use technical refinements.
A bit more stiffness than fluidity in his movements.
Struggles when he does not maintain speed and momentum while closing gaps.
Puck-moving ability lacks creativity, and the results are inconsistent.
Offensive upside and transition impact are limited.
At times, he deadens his feet in the defensive zone, becoming too stationary and overly reliant on net-front physicality.
A limited sample of transition rushes at the prep school level did not generate much.
Very limited time at the major junior level (20 OHL games) and even less production (one assist).
Overall, his game remains raw and will require significant development time.
System rank: 15-30 (organizational depth).
Notes: Kearns is a pure defensive-defenseman projection. While he is buoyed by strong reports on his character and team-first mentality, he’ll need to find more puck-moving and basic playmaking ability to traverse higher levels. He has a long runway ahead to make those gains, with a post-draft year in the OHL on tap before joining the University of Massachusetts Minutemen in 2027-28. If he can get into the 20-30 point range for the Sudbury Wolves this season, it would be a good sign that there could be enough offense in his stick to dream on a professional future.
Carson Rehkopf | Winger | Coachella Valley Firebirds (AHL)
Profile: Left-shot | 21 years old | 6-foot-2 | 201 lbs | 2023 Seattle Kraken second-round pick (signed)
Summary: Carson Rehkopf has significant offensive skill in his stick, combining a high-end shot with deceptive release mechanics and intermittent offensive-zone playmaking ability. He has the offensive instincts to get to soft scoring areas. His strength and physical engagement have taken a step forward since he was drafted, which should give him more of a “B” game, at least in theory.
On the other hand, his ability to rush the puck in transition has not translated professionally, as he struggles to protect the puck or evade checks. His defensive engagement has taken some steps forward but remains significantly below par. His frame and skill set should yield more forechecking and puck-retrieval production, but his commitment and motor are not there often enough.
Even if he does not hit his ceiling, Rehkopf could still bring complementary offensive value as a spot-up shooter in the offensive zone and on power-play setups, but he needs to push his off-puck game up a level or two. He has the frame and skating ability to do it, but the compete needs to be there.
Video: Rehkopf is the left-shot forward wearing No. 16 in white.
Strengths:
Elite major junior goal-scoring ability with a quick catch-and-release shot and a deceptive wrist shot (94 goals in 117 OHL games over two post-draft seasons).
Strong offensive instincts and the ability to find soft areas in coverage; consistently creates separation and gets open in dangerous areas.
Reads defensive rotations, coverage changes, and developing plays well.
Improved playmaking ability at the major junior level, which also flashed professionally, including finding teammates through seams and using give-and-go plays.
Physicality and willingness to engage opponents and battle for space have improved over time.
Showed the ability to be a net-front presence and score from high-danger areas in the OHL.
Shows patience with the puck and can delay plays to allow teammates to get open.
Improved defensive engagement, including better awareness and earlier backchecking.
Weaknesses:
Skating mechanics lack fluidity, particularly when changing direction or handling the puck laterally.
Agility and edgework can limit his ability to create plays independently against higher-level defenders at the blue line or in the offensive zone.
Above average junior pace in transition has not shown up professionally.
Upright skating style leaves the puck exposed to checks.
Puck skills are effective but can become less dynamic when forced into tight, one-on-one situations.
His poor ability to protect the puck or evade defenders with east-west skating often frustrates his rush chances and has caused him to defer as a transition rusher, limiting his scoring potential.
Development in explosiveness and overall skating range may be necessary to achieve offensive impact at the NHL level.
His forechecking and physical game have taken strides, but neither has developed into a strength at the professional level. His “want to” also appears lacking at times.
Defensive production is below average, both in terms of reads and execution; his lack of consistency in this area has cost him deployments in major international tournaments and now at the professional level.
Too many stick infractions when his skating or compete level wanes.
Has not gotten to the front of the net often enough professionally for a player with his physical profile.
Regularly skated in a fourth-line role without power-play time in his first AHL season, having failed to show that he brought enough off the puck to earn more ice time.
With just four points in his last 34 regular-season and postseason AHL games in the 2025–26 season, his scoring proficiency has not translated professionally.
System rank: 8-15 (NHL upside).
Notes: There are times when Rehkopf certainly passes the “eye test.” He can show enough skating and physicality in a 6-foot-2 frame to go along with effective offensive-zone play engagement. That said, I find it unlikely that the once-speculated high-end outcome of a top-six scoring winger is coming unless Rehkopf can take significant strides in his transition play-driving, puck protection, and/or skating agility. Absent that, Rehkopf will need to continue improving his off-puck play to earn NHL ice time in a complementary middle-six and power-play role.
Rehkopf is still young, but he needs to start showing more consistency defensively and on the forecheck this season to earn top-six AHL deployment. It’s hard to see anything more than the slimmest path forward if he’s mired in limited AHL minutes yet again this year.
Curtis is a Sound Of Hockey contributor and member of the Kraken press corps. Curtis is an attorney by day, and he has read the NHL collective bargaining agreement and bylaws so you don’t have to. He can be found analyzing the Kraken, NHL Draft, and other hockey topics on Twitter and Bluesky @deepseahockey.
It’s officially draft week here at Sound Of Hockey. While the Seattle Kraken made waves over the weekend by trading for Mackie Samoskevich and re-signing Bobby McMann to a five-year, $34.5 million contract, they also must now quickly shift their attention to how they will continue to stockpile young prospects into the organization.
You can expect a wave of information and articles leading up to the draft that kicks off Friday, but before that, I thought it would be a good opportunity to check in on how the Seattle Kraken have drafted to date, class by class.
I’m going to attempt to be as objective as possible, which can be challenging. Evaluating a draft class for an individual team is tricky because there are so many variables at play. I tend to look at games played, points, and goals and compare those metrics with historical averages for similar picks and player positions. To get some sense of expectations for each player, I compare them to numbers for players drafted in the same cohort and look at NHL games played, points, and goals in relation to their draft year.
That only goes so far, though, since most of the prospects haven’t played NHL games. That is where the subjectivity needs to come into play. I’ll share more of this as I go, but to illustrate expectations, here is a look at the average games played by round selected in the draft by season from draft.
There’s significant variability within the first round itself, with top‑five selections historically producing far more impact than picks later in the round. Beyond that, the gaps between rounds narrow considerably. Because first‑rounders carry the highest expectations, their outcomes weigh more heavily in my evaluation of each draft class.
What adds to this complexity is that not all drafts are created equal, and a first‑round pick in one year might not carry the same value as the exact same pick the following year. Bottom line, no evaluation criteria can be perfect.
Also important to note: I will not do revisionist history where I criticize the Kraken for not picking “player X” who was taken immediately after their selection, implying they “missed.” An example is Lane Hutson, who was picked No. 62 in the 2022 NHL Draft, one spot after the Kraken selected David Goyette. It’s obvious the Kraken would rather have Hutson at this point, but as The Athletic pointed out, Hutson would likely be drafted in the top five in a re‑draft, knowing what we know now. That would imply 27 teams missed him, including Montreal twice, since the Canadiens had the 26th and 33rd picks in that draft. That kind of logic doesn’t really tell us anything useful about Seattle’s process, so I won’t be doing it.
I will also not be evaluating goalies. Their path to the NHL is longer, less predictable, and far more variable than that of skaters, which makes early assessments unreliable. The Kraken have drafted four goalies to date, and while each has shown encouraging signs, it will take several more seasons before we can meaningfully evaluate their NHL potential.
2021 Seattle Kraken draft class
The Kraken’s first draft class was also the only one in which they had only their original picks—no more, no less.
They drafted second overall and selected Matty Beniers. Although there has been some narrative that he might not be the true No. 1 center the fanbase was anticipating, he is still a very solid NHL player. Comparing him against top‑drafted first‑rounders between 2005 and 2020, he looks average for his draft cohort, but when you compare him against the top 10 forwards selected in his draft, he looks above average. It’s also worth noting that he looks better when compared to the two other forwards selected in the top five of his draft year: Mason McTavish and Kent Johnson. The disconnect between those two charts implies it wasn’t a great draft class at the very top.
Overall, the team did great in selecting Matty second overall in this draft, but where they really excelled was with their later‑round picks.
Through the 2025 season, the Kraken have the third‑most NHL games played from their 2021 draft class. Ryker Evans, Ryan Winterton, and Jacob Melanson were contributors for the Kraken last season, which is a remarkable hit rate considering they were all selected after the first round. An argument could be made about whether these players would be in the lineup on a stronger team, and that’s debatable. But for now, they are far exceeding expectations based on their draft positions.
As for the other players drafted in 2021, it is not certain if Ville Ottavainen will spend the bulk of his pro career in the NHL. Semyon Vyazovoi had a very good season in the Kontinental Hockey League last year and is expected to play in North America next season. Justin Janicke is unlikely to play in the NHL, but that was always the case for any player selected after the second round.
With the solid performance of Beniers in relation to his draft‑class peer group and the production from their second‑and‑later‑round picks, I give this draft class a B+.
2022 Seattle Kraken draft class
There is probably no Kraken‑drafted player more controversial than Shane Wright, and that’s what makes evaluating this draft class tricky, even before we get to the other players.
After a slow start, Wright appeared to be on the right path in his third season since his draft year. After starting the season a little cold, he showed a lot of promise over the 2024‑25 NHL season, posting 19 goals and 25 assists. That put him slightly above average in his peer group and among the top 10 drafted forwards from his draft class.
The problem was last season. His production not only failed to keep pace with his expected trajectory based on his draft position, it dropped. There are plenty of examples of players bouncing back from a dip in production at this point in their development cycle, but as of now, Wright has fallen short of expectations.
As for the rest of the draft class, there are some promising chips on the roulette table, but we still don’t know how any of these players will fare in the NHL. Jani Nyman showcased extremely well at the tail end of the 2024‑25 season but looked overwhelmed when he started the 2025‑26 season with the Kraken. He was reassigned to Coachella Valley in December and only got four more games with the Kraken after the Olympic break.
The narrative about Nyman when he was drafted was that he has a booming shot but isn’t a great skater, and that still holds based on last season’s views. The jury is still out on whether he can be an everyday NHLer.
Jagger Firkus had an excellent season for the Coachella Valley Firebirds, but an injury late in the season prevented him from getting NHL games toward the end of the Kraken season to see if his game can translate to the top level. I expect him to play some games in the NHL next season, but we still don’t know if he will make it as a regular.
As for the rest of the class, Tyson Jugnauth and Ty Nelson are the next best bets to make the NHL. Based on their draft positions, they were longshots to make it, but both have improved their odds based on their play last season. It’s important to note that defensemen tend to be a little bit older compared to forwards when they break into the NHL, so even if they don’t stick next season, that should not be cause for alarm.
As promising as this draft class seemed a year ago, I have no choice but to give it a C based on the production and trajectory we saw last season.
2023 Seattle Kraken draft class
Three years really isn’t enough of a runway for this kind of assessment, but we’re going to do it anyway.
Late‑ish first‑round picks are not guaranteed to be regular NHLers, but it is impossible to ignore that Eduard Šalé’s trajectory has been very disappointing. Šalé is still likely to play in the NHL someday, but except for the occasional streak of games here and there, his performance has been underwhelming for a first‑round draft pick. He had 13 goals and 14 assists in his second AHL season last year, which is not bad, but you would expect more out of a first‑round pick in his third season since the draft.
Of the second‑round picks from this draft class, Oscar Fisker Mølgaard is ahead of schedule. Mølgaard’s strength is his two‑way game, which should translate to the NHL a bit quicker and allow coaches to trust him more. He was called up for 13 games with the Kraken this season and seemed to gain confidence with each game.
The rest of the picks seem to be tracking fine based on their draft positions, with several of them having only one season of North American pro hockey under their belts. In short, it is much too early to draw any firm conclusions on them.
I give this draft class a generous B‑, but it is more realistically an incomplete, since we don’t have enough information to give a true grade.
2024 Seattle Kraken draft class
Like the 2023 draft class, it is too early to give a final grade here, but Berkly Catton spending the full season in the NHL and showing progression inside the season is very encouraging for Kraken fans. He didn’t put up big numbers, but there were signs of the elite talent you want and hope for out of a top‑10 draft pick.
Both Julius Miettinen and Nathan Villeneuve had monster years for their respective junior teams. That is no guarantee of success in the NHL, but you want to see progression from season to season regardless of the league, and they delivered.
Meanwhile, Oliver Josephson, Clarke Caswell, and Jakub Fibigr had good years for their respective teams. Josephson and Caswell made the jump to the NCAA last season and adjusted well to the structured and often heavier game of college hockey. Fibigr, who has always been a longshot to make the NHL, is taking another step in his career this coming season and will be headed to Ohio State, which should help his development.
I am giving this draft class a B+ because most of the players have taken a step in the right direction, and that’s all you can hope for at this point in their development cycle.
2025 Seattle Kraken draft class
Way, way too early on this one.
Jake O’Brien had a very good season in the OHL and is likely headed to Coachella Valley next season. Blake Fiddler is another Kraken prospect headed to the NCAA next season, where he will play for the University of Denver.
After already giving “incompletes” to the 2023 and 2024 draft classes, I have to give this one an incomplete as well.
Overall
Like all teams’ draft classes, there will be hits and there will be misses, and it is hard to say definitively yet whether the Kraken have true hits or misses. The strength of the Kraken prospect pool is really the volume of prospects in it. Will they find gold with one of their non‑first‑round picks popping off to become a high‑end NHL player? We don’t know, but the more swings you have, the better your odds of really connecting on one and hitting it out of the park.
My overall grade for their draft classes through five years is a solid B, with some potential to upgrade to an A… or even slip into the C category.
When the Seattle Kraken drafted Julius Miettinen No. 40 overall in the 2024 NHL Draft, they selected him for his size and his ability to impose himself in the offensive zone.
Though he plays with a lot of intensity on the ice, off the ice he couldn’t be further from that. With a beaming smile, the Kraken are getting one of the brightest, most charming personalities in the WHL.
The 20-year-old from Helsinki, Finland, has enjoyed plenty of success this season with the Everett Silvertips. He has 26 goals, 38 assists, and a plus-51 rating, including a hat trick and two assists last night, Feb. 27, against the Kamloops Blazers. His five-point performance marked a WHL career high.
Now, in what is likely his final season with the Tips before turning pro, Miettinen is looking to lead the franchise to its first WHL championship in team history. He’s focused on leading his team by dominating in tight areas.
“Just small details that the pro game needs you to have. Those are what I’ve been focusing on right now because the jump (to the pros) is gonna be hard,” Miettinen said. “Now I feel like I’m so much better than I was. And I mean, just everything you do as a center affects the game so much.”
Miettinen played in his second World Junior Championship in Minnesota. While wearing an A, he had two goals and two assists in six games, helping lead the team to a silver medal.
“It was awesome,” Miettinen said. “To be there with the Finnish guys as a second-year player, and having that first-year experience under your belt, helped so much.”
According to Miettinen, the Kraken have been paying close attention, monitoring his development ahead of the jump to the pros. He’s worked on his skating and edge work over the last two seasons since being drafted.
He has been in a locker room filled with NHL talent over the past four seasons, including former Silvertips captains Austin Roest and Ben Hemmerling. He named those players as guys who made the jump to the pros and lead by example.
“New place, new guys, new team — that’s always a jump. But I try to live in the moment,” Miettinen said. “It’s cool to see guys live their dreams. Not a lot of guys get the chance to do that. But from their last years, just seeing how they do things, like the life they live — you gotta be a pro.”
Plus, playing with that Landon DuPont guy has been pretty cool, too.
“That guy’s just unbelievable at everything he does,” Miettinen said. “He is so mature. I wouldn’t believe he’s 16 if I didn’t know. How he practices, how he treats his body — it’s just unbelievable. Just everything he does, he’s a pro.”
It’s been an incredible year for the green and white once again. At 47-7-2-1 with 97 points and first place in the Western Conference, they sit a staggering 36 points ahead of the second-place team in the U.S. Division.
The Silvertips seem to be well on their way to another deep playoff run with Miettinen at the helm. The team has fallen short in prior years, but this year feels more promising to him.
“Every year is a new year. You have a different team, different guys with you. But I feel like this year is different. I don’t know how many games we’ve been trailing in the last period, and then we just find a way to come back and win the games.
From the experience of last year, we know what it’s like. We know it’s a battle. It’s one game at a time. We’ve got to focus on the little details. One shift might change the whole season.”
Photo Courtesy of Evan Morud and the Everett Silvertips
With Berkly Catton on the shelf for the foreseeable future, out week-to-week with an upper-body injury, it puts a pause to his much anticipated rookie season.
It was promising to see him out with a red sweater at morning skate on Sunday morning, but coach Lane Lambert said he’s still pretty far from a return.
20 games (well, 21 now) into his NHL career, the 19-year-old remains one of the youngest players in the league. Yet, it’s looking more and more like he will stay with the team for the entire season.
There are a lot of high hopes for Catton among Kraken faithful, with many thinking his playmaking abilities would pay dividends right away for a team that has struggled to find a consistent source of offense. In certain ways he has helped in this regard, but the player who once scored 54 goals in a season in the WHL has yet to find the back of the net as a pro, so the scoring touch hasn’t yet translated.
Obviously, the first 20 games are not going to define the next 20, the next 200 or an entire career. Not all development paths are created equal, but this is a large enough sample size to begin comparing and contrasting.
So, while his season is on pause, let’s take some time to compare Catton’s first 20 games with the other two Kraken first-rounders to reach that mark: Matty Beniers and Shane Wright.
Catton’s first 20
The Kraken had the option of sending Catton back to the Spokane Chiefs for another season, where he did not have much left to prove, or keeping him in the NHL for a full year and burning a season of his entry-level contract.
Drafted No. 8 overall by the Kraken in 2024, the decision to have him spend his first season in the pro ranks was a heavily calculated one by the front office and coaching staff, who felt it was in his best interest to stay in the NHL and learn the ropes a little earlier than normal.
Catton has experienced some ups and downs to start his NHL career. He came out of the gates hot with three assists in his first five games, including an assist in his debut.
But he went quiet over his next 15, recording only two helpers. He’s totaled 17 shots on goal so far with some quality chances, but he just hasn’t been able to finish.
He’s getting close, though, and gaining confidence along the way. Here’s one of those opportunities he had against the Islanders on Nov. 23.
Golden opportunity for Berkly Catton to get his first NHL goal, but Rittich shuts it down.
Catton has spent the majority of his young career playing on a line with Jordan Eberle and the aforementioned Wright, but he has also seen his fair share of different combinations—six in total, according to MoneyPuck.
He was averaging a little more than 12 minutes per night, with that number fluctuating game-to-game, as it often does for players his age.
Comparing it to Wright and Beniers
Wright, drafted No. 4 overall by the Kraken in 2022, split his first 20 NHL games across three seasons from 2022-23 to 2024-2025. He spent time in the OHL, AHL and at World Juniors between his NHL debut and reaching the 20-game mark.
When he was on the ice with the Kraken during those early stints, he produced at roughly the same pace he is producing at now, totaling five goals and two assists while getting about 11 minutes a game. It took Wright until the eighth game of his career to score his first NHL goal, memorably against Montreal.
While Wright hasn’t been the world-breaker he was hyped to be during his junior career, he has still developed into a solid NHL producer, with 63 points in 124 games.
Matty Beniers, meanwhile, is much more of an outlier when it comes to early-career production for the Kraken. His Rookie of the Year award and scoring in just his second ever game underscore that point.
Through his first 20 games, 10 at the end of the 2021-22 season and 10 in 2022-23, Beniers averaged nearly a point per game at seven goals and 10 assists. He was playing more than 18 minutes per night, a luxury that came when the Kraken were just starting out and building their foundation.
What’s to come…
In terms of production, it’s safe to say Catton’s first 20 games looked far more like Wright’s than Beniers’, although his path to 20 has been far more linear than that of Wright. While Catton is probably the most offensively gifted player of the three, it was always going to take something monumental to match Beniers’ first-year totals.
Many different factors play into these development paths. Top picks are always given plenty of runway, and Catton, like the rest of the Kraken’s first-rounders (all of whom are still under the age of 23), undoubtedly has way more time to become the player he was drafted to be. Benchmarks like these simply give context for what may come next.
So when he gets back, how do you think the next 20 games will look for Catton?
As Kraken training camp gets into full swing, it’s a good time to also review the Coachella Valley Firebirds roster. Which new prospects are eligible to join, which veterans remain, and how will they impact the AHL’s veteran rule?
Veterans returning
The AHL is a development league, and teams are limited to five veteran players in a gameday lineup. Veterans are defined as those with more than 260 games of professional experience.
*Ian McKinnon was incorrectly included above, but has not played the required number of games to be classified with veteran status. At 27 years old, McKinnon has played 130 professional games prior to the start of the 2025-26 season.
Above are six players who fall into the veteran category and could see significant time in the AHL. However, one of these and possibly up to three players may start the season with the Kraken. Seattle currently has only 11 forwards locked into NHL roster spots, leaving one fourth-line role and as many as two healthy-scratch spots open. Most likely, either John Hayden or Mitchell Stephens makes the Kraken roster, with younger players like Jani Nyman or Berkly Catton filling the other openings.
If one veteran sticks in Seattle, the Firebirds would have five veterans to rotate while staying under the AHL limit. Ian McKinnon and Gustav Olofsson are on AHL-only contracts, so NHL time isn’t an option for them (unless Seattle wanted to elevate one of them, in which case the team could sign the player to an NHL contract).
McCormick played just 19 games last year before suffering an undisclosed injury and enters camp still on that designation. Fleury could see NHL minutes, but Seattle’s addition of Ryan Lindgren pushed him to eighth on the depth chart. NHL teams usually carry seven defensemen, although the Kraken have occasionally carried eight in past seasons. Being eighth likely means Fleury begins the season in Coachella Valley.
Prospects with AHL experience
As the Kraken enter their fifth season, their prospect pipeline continues to deepen. The Firebirds will have 11 development players with at least one full season of AHL experience:
Nyman could also join this list, but for now we’ll assume he starts the year in Seattle. Sound Of Hockey’s own Darren Brown wrote about prospects to watch, including Melanson, who may push for NHL minutes. Ottavainen is also close to NHL-ready, but Seattle’s offseason moves created a defensive logjam. Because of that, he projects as a call-up option.
Fresh faces
Adding the veteran players and experienced prospects gives Coachella Valley 11 forwards and four defensemen. That leaves one forward and two defense spots open on a typical gameday roster. The AHL has no hard roster limit, so more players can be carried over the NHL’s 23-man cap.
This year, eight new prospects could suit up in the AHL:
Tyson Jugnauth, Andrei Loshko Justin Janicke, and Oscar Fisker Mølgaard are strong candidates to be in Coachella Valley—Jugnauth and Loshko have aged out of the WHL, Janicke has finished his college career, and Mølgaard has made the jump from the Swedish Elite League (SEL). The other five are 20-year-olds still eligible to return to the CHL, though all will push for AHL roles during training camp.
Given that only four defensemen are returning from last year’s team, it’s possible all four newcomers make the Firebirds roster, though it isn’t guaranteed. With Fleury and Ottavainen ready to step into a Kraken role if a need arises, the youngsters could fill any vacancies.
Among the forwards, Janicke is unique—he’s on an AHL-only deal and could be pushed to Kansas City in the ECHL if space runs out. Players on entry-level contracts (ELC) are also eligible to play in the ECHL, but overagers (20-year-olds) remain eligible for the CHL. Typically, those players would be returned to juniors for development rather than being assigned to the ECHL.
In short, performance at training camp will dictate outcomes, but with Seattle pulling some AHL veterans up, the odds are good that most, if not all, of these players land in Coachella Valley.
What about goalies?
The veteran rule does not apply to goaltenders. With journeyman Matt Murray joining the organization and Nikke Kokko ready for a bigger role, the Firebirds appear set in net. Victor Ostman is likely to get playing time in the ECHL to continue his development.
Wrapping up:
Training camp is just beginning, and nothing is finalized. Roster battles remain, and the picture will continue to evolve. While the big question is whether any of the 20-year-old prospects are returned to their junior teams, my view is that all eight will earn spots in Coachella Valley. That sets up a deep, competitive group ready to build on last season.
Key battles to watch in training camp include whether Nyman makes the Kraken, which would leave another forward spot in Coachella Valley, and who secures the right-wing role on the fourth line between Hayden and Melanson. If Berkly Catton makes the Kraken, that could also bump a top-nine forward into that mix. Watching Seattle’s young talent take on larger roles in Coachella Valley makes the future of Kraken hockey look even brighter.
Which Firebirds player are you most excited to watch take a step forward this season?
Blaiz Grubic
Blaiz Grubic is a contributor at Sound Of Hockey. A passionate hockey fan and player for over 30 years, Blaiz grew up in the Pacific Northwest and is an alumni of Washington State University (Go Cougs!). When he’s not playing, watching, or writing about hockey, he enjoys quality time with his wife and daughter or getting out on a golf course for a quick round. Follow @blaizg on BlueSky or X.
