Wow, what an episode, and what an interview with Seattle Kraken center, Morgan Geekie! You’ll laugh along with the young pivot who shares pretty much everything in his conversation with the Sound Of Hockey guys, from winning the Calder Cup to cracking up the entire hockey world with a puzzling and hilarious press conference. Geekie has experienced a lot in his young NHL career, and now he’s ready to become a member of the Kraken and take on a bigger role than he has before. Hear all about it on this week’s episode of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast.
Also on this show, there’s a fair amount of general Kraken news, like the team signing Riley Sheahan and Gustav Olofsson and jerseys slowly becoming available.
John, Andy, and Darren then methodically roll through a variety of topics, including but not limited to:
University of Alaska Anchorage hockey program saved
Arizona Coyotes make bid for Tempe arena
IIHF Women’s World Championship complete
NHL players going to Olympics
The show is rounded out by a dazzling Goalie Gear Corner, then Weekly One-Timers and Tweets of the Week.
It’s another (mostly) fun episode of Sound Of Hockey, filled with interesting factoids (but also some very sad discussion) and terrible puns. This week, Darren starts the show with a quick update on his goaltending-related mental state, which was discussed at length in Episode 151. Then the guys delve into the latest Seattle news, such as Matty Beniers returning to the University of Michigan and Antoine Bibeau being signed by the Kraken.
Later, John, Andy, and Darren discuss the ongoing situation with the Arizona Coyotes, who are effectively being kicked out of Gila River Arena by the City of Glendale. What does this mean for the franchise? Will they actually stay in the Phoenix area or be forced to find a new home?
John gives a quick update on the IIHF Women’s World Championship, which is in full swing, before the gang moves on to this week’s segments.
Last week we illustrated why the 2021-22 Seattle Kraken roster looks better than the 2017-18 Vegas Golden Knights roster did heading into their first NHL season. The Golden Knights also got some key contributions and performances from unlikely players that propelled them into the playoffs in their first year in the NHL. Could some of the Seattle Kraken players be cast into these roles during their inaugural season? We look at some of the key contributors from the Vegas Golden Knights’ magical run in 2017-18 and examine which Seattle Kraken players could play those parts in 2021-22.
The come-out-of-nowhere goal scorer: William Karlsson
William Karlsson was the biggest surprise on the Golden Knights roster during that inaugural season. In the prior two seasons, Karlsson scored 15 goals in 162 games for the Columbus Blue Jackets. In the 2017-18 season, he scored 43 goals for the Golden Knights in 82 games. He led the Golden Knights in goals scored and was third in the league that season.
Seattle Candidates
It is unfair to expect anyone to score 40+ goals in a season, but there are a few candidates who could find themselves having a breakout year with an expanded role in Seattle.
Jared McCann flew under the radar across the league, playing in the shadows of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Jake Guentzel. McCann had 14 goals in 43 games and averaged a relatively low 14 minutes per game. McCann is a safe bet to land on one of the top two forward lines for the Kraken which should get his time on ice north of 17 minutes. More time on ice equals more opportunity to contribute. A 30-goal season from McCann is a legitimate possibility in 2021-22.
Calle Jarnkrok is another sleeper to have a breakout year. Jarnkrok bounced up and down between the second and third line for the Nashville Predators last season and potted 13 goals in 43 games. That was tied for first on the Predators, and just two of his 13 goals came on the power play. Jarnkrok will see more ice time this season, particularly with Yanni Gourde being out of the lineup to start the year. It is unlikely that he hits the 40-goal mark, but getting 30 for Calle is also a possibility.
The rookie surprise: Alex Tuch
Another unlikely breakout for the Golden Knights was rookie forward Alex Tuch. Tuch had just six NHL games before he was acquired during the Expansion Draft via a side deal with Minnesota. He was a former first-round draft pick so maybe we should not have been surprised with his output. He scored 15 goals and 22 assists in 78 games for the Golden Knights that first season.
Seattle Candidates
The Sound Of Hockey team is really excited about Morgan Geekie’s potential. At just 23 years old, he has yet to be given the opportunity to shine in the NHL. He did play 36 games for the Hurricanes last season but averaged less than 10 minutes per game. Geekie will be fighting for a spot on this team, but with Gourde out to start the season, he might be given that opportunity to play up the lineup. That would allow him to really show what he can do.
Nathan Bastian might not be a rookie, but he has only played 48 NHL games over the last two seasons. It might be a bit early for Bastian to take a high-profile contributing role in the NHL, but he has a balanced game and showed that he has a scoring touch in the AHL a few years back. Bastian’s strength is playing a complete game, so his contributions might not show up in the goal column, but seeing his game take a step in the right direction will help the Kraken form a more balanced lineup.
Big step for a young blueliner: Shea Theodore
Shea Theodore started the first month of the 2017-18 season playing for the Chicago Wolves in the AHL. He was eventually called up by the Golden Knights and never looked back. The former Seattle Thunderbird finished the season with 29 points over 61 games and placed second on the team for time on ice per game.
Seattle Candidates
The Seattle Kraken defensive corps is stronger than that of the Golden Knights during the 2017-18 season, so the need for a young, up-and-coming defenseman to take that big step is not required. If there were a young blueliner to expect that from, though, Haydn Fleury is probably the defenseman to keep an eye on. Fleury has a lot of potential but has yet to establish himself as a consistent NHL player over the last few seasons. A fresh start in Seattle could be exactly what he needs at this point in his young career.
What you see is what you get: James Neal and Jonathan Marchessault
James Neal and Jonathan Marchessault continued posting numbers consistent with their career norms for the Golden Knights in their first season. Neal had 23 goals the season before moving to Vegas and 25 goals in that 2017-18 season for the Golden Knights. Meanwhile, Marchessault had 30 goals before his 27-goal campaign with the Golden Knights.
Seattle Candidates
Goal scoring by committee seems to be the game plan for this team. Getting consistent contributions from Joonas Donskoi, Jordan Eberle, and Yanni Gourde will be needed for success in year one of the franchise. All three of them are capable of scoring 20 goals in a season and all three players have been consistent performers over the last few years.
Setting expectations
To be clear, we are not anticipating the same success for the Seattle Kraken that the Golden Knights experienced in year one. Vegas seemed to be a team possessed with everything clicking for them during the 2017-18 season. Anticipating a William Karlsson-type 40-plus-goal season from one of the Kraken players is not reasonable, but it may not be required to make the playoffs. Several media outlets have the Kraken earmarked as a playoff team, and if a couple of these contributing roles play out, it will solidify their position in the notably weak Pacific Division.
Opinions about the Seattle Kraken roster are all over the map. Some people project them to be second in the Pacific Division while others think this group leaves much to be desired, but no one really knows how they will be until they get some games under their belt. It is always fun to remind people, however, that no one projected the success of the Golden Knights in year one. With this in mind, we thought it would be a nice exercise to compare the offensive statistics of the Seattle Kraken and Vegas Golden Knights rosters heading into their respective inaugural seasons.
Centers
Vegas’ top centers going into the 2017-18 season were Jonathan Marchessault, William Karlsson, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Cody Eakin, and Brandon Pirri. Vegas also had Vadim Shipachyov on the roster, but for the purposes of this exercise, we are excluding him from the analysis.
The Seattle Kraken roster has eight players that could play center, but for the purposes of this exercise, we are assuming Calle Jarnkrok and Alexander True will either play wing or in True’s case not be one of the top five centers. Marcus Johansson will also likely play some of each, but we’re counting him as a center here. That leaves Alex Wennberg, Yanni Gourde, Johansson, Colin Blackwell, and Morgan Geekie as the comparable group to Vegas.
Here is a quick look at how the teams stack up against each other, using stats from the year before each club’s inaugural season (i.e., 2016-17 for Vegas, 2020-21 for Seattle).
Offensively, the Kraken’s centers look substantially better than the Golden Knights’ centers looked heading into their first season.
Here is a breakdown of goals per game by player.
Marchessault was a big standout with 30 goals in the prior season before joining the Golden Knights for 2017-18. He put up similar numbers during the 2017-18 campaign with 27 goals. Meanwhile, Karlsson was the big surprise for Vegas, going from six goals in 2016-17 to 43 goals in 2017-18 or .52 goals per game.
Wings
Looking at the wings in Vegas for that inaugural season, we are including Alex Tuch, David Perron, Erik Haula, James Neal, Oscar Lindberg, Reilly Smith, Tomas Nosek, and William Carrier. Vegas added Ryan Carpenter on waivers and acquired Ryan Reaves and Tomas Tatar around the trade deadline late in the season. Because they were not on the roster to start the season, they are excluded from the analysis.
For Seattle, we are including Brandon Tanev, Calle Jarnkrok, Jaden Schwartz, Jared McCann, Joonas Donskoi, Jordan Eberle, Mason Appleton, and Nathan Bastian. As mentioned above, Blackwell or Johansson will probably play wing from time to time, but we already included them in the center category and did not want to double count. Jarnkrok, McCann, Bastian, and Appleton can all play center as well, but for now we are slotting them in at wing.
Here is a look at the numbers.
Like the centers, Seattle’s wingers look better heading into their inaugural season than the Golden Knights wing corps before their inaugural season.
Here is a look at the player detail of goals per game.
Vegas saw big increases in production from Haula, Smith, and Tuch. Collectively they would add 36 more goals in 2017-18 than they produced in 2016-17.
Defense
For the defensive group in Vegas, we are including Deryk Engelland, Colin Miller, Nate Schmidt, Brayden McNabb, Luca Sbisa, Shea Theodore, Jon Merrill, and Brad Hunt. For Seattle we are including Mark Giordano, Adam Larsson, Jamie Oleksiak, Vince Dunn, Connor Carrick, Haydn Fleury, Carson Soucy, and Jeremy Lauzon.
Seattle’s defense is commonly regarded as the strength of the team, and it certainly shows in the offensive production numbers in the graph. Here is the player breakdown.
Vegas only saw a mild increase in goal production from their defensive corps during the 2017-18 season.
Seattle is not Vegas
Looking at goals, assists, and points per game is a very simple way to evaluate the Kraken roster and should not be taken as a testimonial that Seattle will be better than Vegas in season one. Vegas really took advantage of some players having career years during the 2017-18 season.
Are there players in Seattle that can have similar breakout years? TBD, but in the meantime the Kraken roster looks more productive offensively than a lot of people think.
Welcome back to Weekly One-Timers, where the smoke has cleared and the temperature has fallen to a more comfortable level. The Seattle Kraken had another fairly busy week on the hiring and signing front, rounding out their coaching staff a bit more and getting two of their remaining three restricted free agents officially in the fold. Meanwhile, we at Sound Of Hockey have been hunkered down inside trying not to breathe in the poisonous air outside while also trying not to sweat our a**es off. We are thankful for the reprieve that Seattle is experiencing this Sunday.
Seattle Kraken hire goalie coach and assistant AHL coach
Andrew Allen
The Kraken officially named Andrew Allen as their goalie coach this week. Allen, 45, is already a friend of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast (Episode 110), so it makes perfect sense that Seattle would hire him, being that the most important relationship already exists. But seriously, Allen is an awesome dude with a fascinating story, and his hiring comes as no surprise.
He played college hockey for the University of Vermont, then went on to play five pro seasons, bouncing back and forth between the ECHL and AHL and dressing in two NHL games for the Florida Panthers. Worth noting, Allen had a brief stint with the famed Macon Whoopee.
When his playing career ended, Allen’s coaching journey started with minor hockey in Canada, before he eventually got the opportunity to coach the Japanese national team.
“I was like a rockstar,” Allen told the Sound Of Hockey Podcast of his time coaching in Japan. “In North America, it’s like goalie-to-student ratio of three or four. They would put a kids camp on their website… It would be like a rock concert where it was sold out in seven minutes. You’d have like 40 goalies on the ice, and you’d have camera flashes coming from the crowd, and I’m like, ‘This is amazing!’ And they were so passionate about hockey. So I had such a great experience in Japan.”
He then rose through the ranks and was hired as the developmental goalie coach for the Chicago Blackhawks’ AHL affiliate Rockford IceHogs before becoming the head goalie coach for the Buffalo Sabres, where he spent four seasons.
Most recently, Allen was a pro scout for the Kraken, specifically focused on goaltending.
“Andrew has been a valuable member of our team over the last year and played an integral role in the Expansion Draft as our pro goalie scout,” said Kraken general manager Ron Francis via press release. “We’re proud to keep working with him as he transitions to a coaching role, bringing his wealth of experience with him to our team’s day-to-day.”
Dan Bylsma
The hiring by Seattle of Dan Bylsma as an assistant coach for the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers did come as a bit of a surprise. The former Stanley Cup and Jack Adams Award winner had most recently been serving as an assistant coach with the Detroit Red Wings. In the same role but at the AHL level is not where we expected Bylsma to land, especially since he has real NHL head coaching experience and success on his resume.
Our theory (and this is just a theory) at Sound Of Hockey is that the Kraken are teeing Bylsma up to become the head coach for their AHL affiliate in Palm Springs when that team begins play in 2022-23. Time will tell if we are correct in that prediction.
“Disco” Dan, 50, played 429 career NHL games. He posted a record of 252-117-32 during his six seasons as the head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins. He also went 68-73-23 with the Buffalo Sabres over two seasons.
Said Francis, “Dan joins our organization with an impressive resume, and his experience speaks for itself. He’s won a Stanley Cup, a Jack Adams Award, and he has a proven track record and we look forward to him coaching our prospects in Charlotte alongside head coach Geordie Kinnear.”
Kraken sign two RFA’s
Cale Fleury
When the Kraken granted the Sound Of Hockey Podcast permission to interview Cale Fleury this past week, we figured it was only a matter of time before it was announced that he had been signed by the team. Sure enough, on the same day we released the episode, the team confirmed it had signed the 22-year-old defenseman to a one-year, two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level.
Selected from the Montreal Canadiens over such notable veterans as Carey Price and Shea Weber, Fleury was the youngest player taken in the Expansion Draft. He joins a deep blue line and knows that he will have to fight hard to land a spot with the Kraken.
“I think for me, I’ll have to be one of the guys that’s battling for a spot, a little bit different than some of the other guys who were drafted obviously,” Fleury said in his podcast interview. “It’s not really a new position for me, it’s kind of what I’ve been in my whole career so far.”
He added that Francis “would have picked me for a reason,” and he’s absolutely right. Brother of fellow Kraken defenseman Haydn Fleury, Cale played 41 games for the Canadiens in 2019-20 but was bumped down to the AHL’s Laval Rocket this past season with the arrival of Alexander Romanov in Montreal.
“Cale is a smooth skater that has shown even at his young age to be a responsible defender that can play reliable minutes,” said Francis. “We like his mix of physicality and puck-moving skills and are excited to see him develop with our organization.”
Carsen Twarynski
The Kraken also announced that they had agreed to terms with Carsen Twarynski, 23, the forward that they selected in the Expansion Draft from the Philadelphia Flyers.
During his tenure in the Flyers organization, Twarynski played 22 NHL games in total, including seven in 2020-21. He also has 107 AHL games under his belt with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, where he notched 38 points.
Local WHL fans may recognize his name, as he played major junior hockey with the Calgary Hitmen and Kelowna Rockets from 2014-15 to 2017-18.
“Carsen plays a physical, high-energy game, and we like his tenacity and willingness to compete,” added Francis. “He plays a responsible game and we like his motor.”
With Fleury and Twarynski signed, Dennis Cholowski is the only remaining RFA without a finalized contract.
Around the boards
The Florida Panthers announced this week that “Jumbo” Joe Thornton is taking his talents to Sunrise, where he has signed on for a one-year deal at the league minimum of $750,000. This will be Thornton’s 25th season in the NHL. He has 1,529 career points in 1,680 games with the Bruins, Sharks, and Maple Leafs, and will surely enjoy being back in a place where he never has to wear a shirt.
I believe this is Brent Burns and Joe Thornton. They are walking around Pittsburgh's North Shore and don't give ONE HELL. pic.twitter.com/T7t8LiLlBy
The IIHF Women’s World Championship is finally set to begin this week in Calgary. The event was canceled altogether in 2020, then postponed and moved from Nova Scotia, where it was supposed to be played in May of 2021. Team USA begins prelims on Friday against Switzerland at 6:30 p.m. Pacific on NHL Network.
Everett Silvertips defenseman Olen Zellweger signed his entry-level contract with the Anaheim Ducks this week. Zellweger, 17, is a silky-smooth skater who had 13 points in 11 games for the Tips this past season. He was selected in the second round of the NHL Entry Draft last month, No. 34 overall, and is primed for a huge season in the WHL.
Palate cleansers
The Kraken schedule now has game times.
The league announced game start times today. Some home games of note for the #SeaKraken: – Oct 31 6pm Start (all Sunday games start at 6pm) – Jan 1st 7pm – Jan 17th 2pm (Monday) – April 9th 4pm (Saturday) All other non-Sunday games are 7pm starts. pic.twitter.com/u1NRGawq2V
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at Sound Of Hockey and the host, producer, and editor of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is an inconsistent beer league goalie who believes that five players have to make a mistake before the puck gets to him. Follow him on Twitter @DarrenFunBrown or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
In this episode of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast, we learn about “the stank of the Sabre” and what that means for players and coaches. We also hear from Cale Fleury, who was the youngest player selected in the Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft. Get his side of the story that his brother had told about sending him home in tears at times when they were kids. Plus, hear about his offseason training plans and his expectations for where he slots in with the Kraken.
Also on this show, plenty of Kraken news, including the hirings of Andrew Allen as goalie coach and Dan Bylsma as an assistant with the AHL Charlotte Checkers.
Andy gives a WHL Update about Stu Barnes (former Kraken pro scout) becoming the head coach of the Tri-City Americans, the team he also coincidentally co-owns.
John and Darren give Weekly One-Timers, then the guys wrap up with Tweets of the Week.
