We know win-loss preseason results don’t matter. I would also caution against overvaluing individual performances. The sample size is small; quality of teammates and competition vary much more widely than in the regular season; and players may be playing their first games with new teammates or trying to work on a certain aspect of their game instead of their normal approach.
That said, preseason data is all we have to go on so far, and it’s typically unavailable in aggregate form in the public sphere. So, with a healthy heap of salt, let’s take a look at the preseason performance of Seattle’s skaters and highlight a few standout areas to see what we can learn about the Kraken. Unless otherwise noted, the data was drawn from Natural Stat Trick.
Tilting the ice
Among forwards with at least 20 minutes of 5-on-5 time on ice, no one boosted the team in terms overall shot share more than Tye Kartye. We brought him up on the Sound Of Hockey Podcast as a player looking for his shot more going into his second full season. Hopefully, the preseason is a springboard for him into the regular season.
On the other end of the spectrum, the team gave up far more than it generated in terms of overall shot count when Matty Beniers and Chandler Stephenson were on the ice. As seen in the chart below, neither generated much at 5-on-5 in terms of shot quality off their own sticks, nor was the team generating positive overall shot quality share with them on the ice. These are two key players to Seattle’s success, and the team will be looking to them to start tilting the ice in the other direction once the games start counting for real.
Defensively, Brandon Montour has been delivering offense, as expected. Adam Larsson and Vince Dunn (in limited ice time) fared well, particularly defensively. The most notable performances were by Ville Ottavainen, who was an offensive boon for shot attempts, and Maxime Lajoie, who interestingly killed shots both for and against with equal measure.
When looking at individual shot quality and overall team success, Montour and Jamie Oleksiak–who quietly performs well while rarely ever being discussed–stood out. The early returns suggest this could be a very strong two-way defensive pair.
Overall, Kartye and Shane Wright drove the most offense when they were on the ice at 5-on-5. Beniers and Jared McCann struggled, though I have few concerns about McCann, given his track record.
Carrying the power play
Shifting focus to the revamped power play unit, among players who logged more than two minutes on the man advantage, no one stood out for his shot quality contributions more than Wright. He led the team with four high-danger chances on the power play, per Natural Stat Trick.
This matches the eye test from the preseason, where he was a menace down low, particularly on rebound opportunities. From my vantage, Wright should be getting heavy minutes on the first unit power-play until he proves he can’t do it.
Standout young players
While I didn’t include them in the charts above due to exceedingly small sample sizes, a couple players who only saw one game created truly excellent outcomes when they were on the ice. Nathan Villeneuve earned the goal he scored, with .54 individual expected goals created in just over 12 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time. His 2.67 expected goals per 60 minutes was by far the highest rate on the team, surpassing Kartye’s figure in three games. And no player tilted shot quality farther in favor of the Kraken than Lleyton Roed. The Kraken had almost 92 percent of shot quality share when Roed played 5-on-5.
Wow! Nathan Villeneuve with a rocket one-timer! 🚀
Bjorkstrand sets him up, and the youngster gets a pretty goal and a nice little “sheath the sword” celly. 🗡️ #SeaKraken
Team-level shot quality indicators show areas for growth
Overall, the Kraken shot quality share was solid. The team took 52.4 percent of total shot attempts and 53.6 percent of shot quality overall when playing 5-on-5 this preseason. The numbers were similar in all situations, with the Kraken remaining above 50 percent in each category.
Seattle’s special teams units are still a work in progress, though. The power play generated only 5.87 expected goals per 60 minutes according to Natural Stat Trick, which is a poor rate, significantly trailing last year’s mediocre 7.03 rate, per HockeyViz. Likewise the penalty kill struggled, conceding 8.94 expected goals against per 60 minutes, which trails last season’s 7.75 rate–again per HockeyViz. The sample size is extraordinarily small, and it is clear the team is still working on new things–particularly on the power play–so some ramp up time is to be expected. But this underscores the importance of growth on special teams if the team is going to get to where it wants to go at the end of the season.
* * *
Anything else you’re curious about in the team’s preseason data? Drop us a note below or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @deepseahockey or @sound_hockey.
Curtis Isacke
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 Nov. 19, 2022, and the Minnesota Wild are hosting the Carolina Hurricanes at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. It’s the second shift of the game. Defenseman Calvin de Haan of the Hurricanes gains control of the puck just inside his own blue line and looks to turn up the ice.
Over the course of the next 20 seconds, the puck touches eight different sticks on both teams, and no player possesses it for more than a second or two. The end result is de Haan’s partner, Jalen Chatfield, looking to re-start the process inside the Carolina blue line–neither team having gained any ground.
Was it uncoordinated chaos? A failed puck chase? It may look that way at first. But as you peel back the onion, the subtleties of team play at the NHL level start to reveal themselves.
From Minnesota’s perspective, the Wild deployed a 1-2-2 neutral zone forecheck, with the defensemen staying wide at the defensive blue line and an F3 ready to take away the center zone entry. As the Hurricanes puck carrier stayed wide, the Wild left defenseman, Jake Middleton, moved to deny a clean controlled zone entry at the blue line. The backchecking forward, Mats Zuccarello, backfills for Middleton and the right defenseman, Jared Spurgeon, skates over to cover the strong side net front.
With the puck now loose down into the corner, Spurgeon jumps on it. He attempts to break the Hurricanes forecheck with a pass up the boards (a “strong side push”). This breakout is stymied by pinching Hurricanes defender Chatfield, but with so many Hurricanes forecheckers deep in the offensive zone on the strongside, the Wild quickly reverse the puck behind the net to an alternative set breakout. That breakout is designed to bypass pressure on the weak side and get a quick transition to a controlled counter strike. However, the Hurricanes are again quick to diagnose the play and break up the exit. The puck drifts out to Chatfield.
When you break it down, it has the grace and coordination of a ballet and the tactics of a chess match. Each move met with a coordinated response. It’s disciplined and instinctual play on the ice. It’s also the product of detailed coaching.
OK, that’s great. But at this point you might fairly be asking why do we care about any of this at all? On that day–and for a period of six-plus seasons from 2017 to 2023–new Seattle Kraken assistant coach Bob Woods was the coach in charge of the Wild defense. And, as we’ll see, how his teams have played in the past can tell us a lot about how the Kraken will defend this year.
Last time, we looked at Woods’ experience and the historical performance of his defenses. In Woods’ introductory press conference, Kraken coach Dan Bylsma said, “It’s always a challenge to coach against a Bob Woods team and so you know you kind of want that on your side.”
What makes it challenging to beat a Woods defense? We found that his teams don’t win by turning the puck over (seventh-fewest turnovers forced during his Wild tenure) or ratcheting up the physicality (second-fewest hits). Even so, Woods’ Wild defenses forced the opponent to shoot from the outside, smothered opponent chances in the “house,” blocked shots, gathered rebounds, and efficiently broke out of the defensive zone.
All of this implies a defensive philosophy that guards the middle and works inside-out to the shooter with discipline. Does the tape support that? Let’s take a look at the systems Woods used in Minnesota and early returns on what we’re seeing so far in training camp and the preseason with the Seattle Kraken.
Neutral-zone forecheck
When the opponent has control of the puck in its own end and is looking toward transition, Woods’ Minnesota teams used a 1-2-2 neutral zone defensive forecheck. This is a common system. Seattle used a similar scheme under Dave Hakstol. There will be subtle differences though.
In a 1-2-2, the defense forms into three layers. A single forward at the top near the opponent’s blue line (F1), two forwards covering each half of the ice near the red line (F2, F3) and the two defensemen nearer the defensive blue line (D1, D2).
The goal of the F1 forward is to provide conservative pressure while blocking the center advance. The opponent is forced to commit to one side or the other. This funnels the play toward the F2 or F3 side, who will look to choke off the play at the red line and force the opponent to ice the puck if they can. Failing that, the forward looks to further constrict the advance toward the boards, allowing the defenseman behind to step up at the blue line and disrupt a controlled zone entry attempt.
Whichever side the opponent advances on (e.g., the F2 side in the diagram above), the backside forward (F3 in the diagram above) skates back closer to the center of the ice to take away a center blue line entry while the defensemen stay wide. This allows the backside defenseman to collapse more quickly into defensive coverage. This movement is different from most 1-2-2 schemes.
In the clip above, we see how this works in action. Minnesota’s F1, Kirill Kaprizov, advances in controlled fashion on the Hurricane in possession, forcing a commitment up the far side boards. The F2 defender, Connor Dewar, steps up between the opponent blue line and red line forcing a pass that is easy for the next layer of the Minnesota scheme, defenseman Jonas Brodin, to diagnose and force an uncontrolled dump-in entry. The backside F3, Mason Shaw, dives to the middle to cover the blue line, and the retreating backside D2 is in uncontested position to take control of the puck and break it out.
This preseason, we’ve seen the Kraken deploy this same scheme.
The system gets more conservative when the opponent is able to break the forecheck and attack through the center of the ice with speed. The team then goes to a lock-step retreating 1-2-2 to take away space for passes and the most threatening zone entry.
As we see in the clip above, this will often concede a controlled entry, but it is intended to keep the opponent to the outside and allow Minnesota to set up its defensive-zone scheme.
Defensive-zone breakout
After watching a good deal of Minnesota Wild hockey under Bob Woods and digging into the data, it strikes me that all of Woods’ defensive schemes are in service of one goal: limiting high-danger chances. Sometimes this means getting aggressive (stepping up to disrupt controlled entries at the blue line is good) but more often it means playing relentlessly disciplined (and some might say “conservative”) hockey.
This extends to the system for getting the puck out of the defensive zone under pressure. Bylsma has expressed a desire to get north quickly, but overzealous zone exit attempts under pressure carry significant risk. As Kraken fans no doubt recall from Season 1, the most dangerous turnovers come toward the middle of the ice in the defensive zone. Woods’ teams avoid the risk of these types of turnovers by defaulting to defensive-zone breakouts that use the walls. In the worst case scenario, a turnover would occur in a position that allowed the Wild to resume their defensive-zone structure.
After recovery of the puck deep in the defensive zone, the first option for the D1 in possession tends to be a pass up the strong-side boards to a support forward (F1). Ideally, the F1 is presented with two options. First, he can continue the puck up the boards, bypassing the forechecker to a second forward (F2) streaking toward the defensive blue line. Or second, he can hit the third forward (F3) who fills the middle of the ice and could take a pass up the middle for center breakout. Then, in an attempt to bolster the speed of the transition, the backside defender (D2) activates into the rush. This system has various names but is often called a “bump by” or “strong-side push.”
Here we see Minnesota attempt a strong-side push breakout along the far-side boards. Defenseman Calen Addison (No. 2) is ready to join the rush if it succeeds, but Carolina diagnoses the bump-by attempt and foils the exit.
If there is pressure on the strong side, an option available to the defenseman in possession is to reverse the puck to his defense partner below the net. Two forwards fly the zone up the backside, and the defenseman targets a pass along the boards to hit a streaking forward.
Here, the goal is to bypass aggressive zone pressure and convert into offense as quickly as possible without risking a pass through the middle of the defensive zone. This is a “reverse”/“counterstrike” variant on the strong-side wall play.
Defensive coverage high in the zone
In Minnesota, Woods utilized a man coverage scheme in the defensive zone in most situations when the puck was off the wall and above the goal line. Based on what we’ve seen in preseason games, it looks like the Kraken will not be utilizing that scheme but instead a version of a 2-1-2 zone defense that bends towards Woods’ principles. To understand what I mean by that, let’s first take a look at what Woods ran in Minnesota and then compare it to what we’ve seen from the Kraken in the preseason.
In Woods’ Minnesota man-defense scheme, a Wild player would track his check around the zone with one eye toward denying passes, but, more importantly, with the aim of staying between his check and the goal to deny clean shooting opportunities.
It sounds simplistic, but few NHL teams actually run this kind of defense because it requires mobility and defensive commitment from all five defensive skaters. The defensemen need to be comfortable tracking to the outside, and the forwards need to be comfortable at the net front, depending on offensive rotation.
In this clip, defenseman Jared Spurgeon (No. 46) ends up near the blue line in coverage. The coverage works and Carolina ends up with a low-danger chance from the blue line.
Most important to Woods’ scheme is that coverage is intentionally loosened higher in the defensive zone. The points are intentionally left relatively “open” because the defense wants to funnel the puck there for shots. When dealing with an opponent in possession near the blue line, the Wild defender stays conservative and approaches in a deliberate straight line with goal to prevent a direct slap shot.
In this clip, you see at about the three-second mark that the forwards in man coverage on Hurricanes point players have compressed down to the tops of the circles. This creates effectively a 5-on-3 scenario, where the only clean option available to Carolina is the low-to-high pass back to the point. Again, the result is a low-danger point shot.
At the end of the day, the goal of the man coverage is not necessarily to take away the puck but to suffocate chances at getting inside. High passing and cycles are fine, as long as there’s nowhere to go inside.
Fast forward to Seattle, and it appears the Kraken will not be adopting this defensive coverage wholesale. Instead, the Kraken will deploy a more conventional 2-1-2 zone defense in situations when the puck is off the wall above the goal line. Basically, the Kraken will deploy two defensemen in front of the net, two forwards (typically the wingers) high, and the center in the middle of the ice with more roving responsibility. The Kraken skaters will then pick up and defend players who come into their zones. (This is also called a “box-and-one” defense.)
We’re dealing with a small sample of preseason games, but the key similarity between schemes to me is to sag off the points and create a number advantage from the circles down in order to force the puck away from the “house” (where high-danger chances come from) and back to the points. Once the puck is on the outside, the teaching point is not to overreact and chase, but stay disciplined to keep yourself between the player in your zone and the goal. Again, opponent possession is OK, as long as the puck doesn’t get inside.
In the clip above, I believe we see (a Connor McDavid-induced) example of what not to do. The Kraken get caught extending their zone coverage too high out to the blue line, which allows for Edmonton to get the puck inside with a pass for a more dangerous opportunity.
By contrast, here, we see a more effective deployment of the condensed 2-1-2 zone coverage from Seattle that forces the puck back to the point where the shot is blocked and Seattle breaks it out of the zone.
So, we see the philosophy is the same as the man coverage scheme deployed in Minnesota. If that’s the case, why not simply use the Minnesota scheme? Three potential explanations occur to me. First, the Kraken have a few larger defensemen who may not be as comfortable or effective tracking a check in man coverage out to the blue line. (Jamie Oleksiak’s highest and best use isn’t blocking shots 40 feet from the net.) Second, the players or other members of the coaching staff may have expressed greater comfort running a zone scheme that is closer to what Seattle (and Coachella Valley) ran last year. Third, the transition into low zone coverage is a bit more streamlined coming out of the 2-1-2 zone than a man coverage. Let’s get into those coverages in a moment.
That’s not to say it’s without challenges. Philipp Grubauer gave an insightful comment on this earlier in the preseason, noting the biggest challenge for him is getting comfortable with how coverages work and shift directly in the front of the net because it affects where he can be and which players are likely to be open or available to tip the puck. “It’s getting used to screens, everybody crossing in front of you, tips. Like who is open at what time? It changed a little bit, I think, in the [defensive] zone. So for us goalies, finding a depth is really important and recognizing or reading the game and who is open at what time.”
Low/boards defensive zone coverage
When the puck ends up along the boards below the goal line, Woods’ Minnesota scheme would send the two closest into the corner with the other three covering the goal posts and the slot in a tight triangle zone coverage around the goal.
The goal is to take away the quick strike at the net front or the high-danger cross-seam pass and instead force the puck around the boards on the outside so the Wild can get back into their man coverage.
As seen in the clip above, the Kraken have run a similar system in dealing with plays in the corner and below the goal line. When the opposition is shifted almost entirely to the strong side, the defensive coverage shifts with it to leave one player net front, one in the slot, and one player further up the boards to intercept an attempted high-low pass.
Likewise, when the puck is contested along the boards above the goal line, the Kraken typically send the center first into the puck battle, potentially to be supported by the closer of the nearside defenseman or forward, with the others rotating into positions to defend the net-front and cross-seam passes.
Working toward “connected” Kraken hockey
Implementing new systems is a process that takes time–not because they’re complex, but because players need to internalize and deploy them instinctually at full game speed. For his part, head coach Dan Bylsma told the media he subscribes to the theory that habits take three weeks to form (which happens to be one day longer than the full run time of camp).
After an error-riddled preseason debut against the Flames on Sept. 22 in which the team gave up 13 high-danger shot attempts, a hoarse Bylsma said, “I think there was a concerted effort to do some of the things we’re talking about,” but “it just wasn’t on the same page. We weren’t at all connected, we weren’t doing it together, and the play was a lot like my voice as a result.”
Forward Tye Kartye was frank that the defensive coverage needed to improve. According to Kartye, this could only come from “trusting everyone [and] making sure everyone’s in their right spot.” “When everyone knows what everyone else is doing and we can all trust it… that’s how we’ll have success,” Kartye said. “It takes a couple of game situations to get into that in terms of understanding the system again and making reads again,” added Grubauer.
A week later, after the team’s game on Sept. 28, Grubauer had seen tangible progress. “Now we had some time to practice 5-on-5, the power play–which we didn’t have much time [to do] before [the first preseason game]–to get to know the system changes… So now it’s getting better.”
The player- and scheme-level defensive connectivity the Kraken had been seeking was on full display two nights later in Calgary. At 8:12 in the first period, Calgary defenseman Daniil Miromanov possessed the puck, scanning the Kraken 1-2-2 neutral-zone forecheck as he advanced.
As Calgary approached center ice, the weak-side forward (Ryan Winterton) collapsed toward the middle of the defensive blue line to take away the center drive, keeping Calgary hemmed in along the wall. This allowed Kraken defenseman Josh Mahura to step up and disrupt the blue line entry. With a loose puck to the corner, the other defenseman, Ville Ottavainen, gathered the puck and rapidly attempted a strong-side push exit.
If this all sounds familiar, it’s because we saw the Wild doing the same things in the sequence described at the very top of this post. As in that case, the Calgary forecheckers here shut down an attempted exit along the boards causing a contested puck scenario.
Here, Calgary emerges with possession, so Seattle rapidly springs into their 2-1-2 compressed zone defense. The low challenge by Ottavainen and forward Ben Meyers causes the Calgary forward to take the open low-to-high pass out to the blue line. Calgary defenseman MacKenzie Weegar receives the puck at the point, but all of the low options are covered, and Meyers rapidly advances toward the shooting lane. This leaves Calgary with only one option–a distance shot on net easily corralled by Joey Daccord.
The Kraken worked together stacking strategies to deny a controlled entry and then mitigate virtually all danger after a failed zone exit. It’s not a finished product yet, but the trust and connection is growing.
“[Woods] is new to the players and that trust and relationship… continues to be built up as training camp goes along,” Bylsma said. But Bylsma is confident it will get there quickly. “[Woods is a] great communicator, great relationship builder on defense.”
If history is an indication, Woods’ Kraken defense should be formidable once it all comes together.
Curtis Isacke
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.
As the NHL preseason nears its conclusion, the Coachella Valley Firebirds roster is solidifying. The offseason brought significant changes to Coachella Valley, including a new head coach and a substantial roster turnover.
The Firebirds have two preseason games scheduled against the Milwaukee Admirals, both in Independence, Missouri: Oct. 4 and 5. Their regular-season home opener is set for Oct. 11 against the Bakersfield Condors. Training camp for the Firebirds started on Sept. 30, and with some AHL players spending part of that time still with the Kraken, the training camp roster has been a mix of projected ECHL and AHL players.
New Firebirds coach, Derek Laxdal, has been hired to replace Dan Bylsma, who was promoted to head coach for the Seattle Kraken. Assistant coach Jessica Campbell also joined the Kraken, leaving a vacancy that was filled by former WHL Saskatoon Blades coach Brennan Sonne. Assistant coach Stu Bickell will remain in his role.
Laxdal brings a winning mentality, boasting 15 winning seasons in 19 years as a coach. He has championship experience as both a player and a coach. As a player, he won the Calder Cup in 1990 with the Springfield Indians. As the coach of the Edmonton Oil Kings, he won WHL championships in 2011-12 and 2013-14, with the 2014 team also raising the Memorial Cup. Laxdal’s coaching career encompasses a wide range of levels, from the CHL to the NHL.
Laxdal commented on what fans can expect to see in the upcoming season, “You’re going to see a team I think that you have seen here before that competes night in, night out, competes hard on the puck. [It’s a team] that plays hard, that has great intensity and you’re going to see a little bit more skill level coming into the organization with all these young prospects.”
Roster overhaul
The Firebirds’ significant roster turnover was largely due to the veteran rule, which I discussed in July. This has opened up opportunities for Kraken prospects. There are 14 new faces on the team roster. Here’s a projected lineup for the team.
* New Firebirds for the upcoming season
David Goyette, Jani Nyman, and Lleyton Roed joined the Firebirds at the end of last season. While they gained some experience with the team, this upcoming season will be their first full campaign with the Firebirds. Therefore, they’re considered new players for the 2024-25 season in the table above.
Firebirds youth movement
The Firebirds are undergoing a youth movement as more young players, including several Kraken draft picks, join the team. This has resulted in a roster with a significantly lower average age.
A younger forward group
The forward group projected above has an average age of 23.1 years, a decrease of one full year from last season. Eight forwards are under 23, and five of these players will either make their professional debut or play in their first full year with the AHL club.
Jagger Firkus: The 2023-24 CHL overall scoring leader with 126 points, Firkus will transition to right wing this season. His size has always been a question, but his ability to succeed in his new position and maintain his scoring prowess at the AHL level will be crucial for his development.
David Goyette: A second-round pick by the Kraken in 2022, Goyette consistently improved his scoring and capped off his junior career by winning the OHL scoring race with 117 points.
Jani Nyman: Known affectionately as “Li’l Jani” by Sound Of Hockey, Nyman is anything but small. At 6-foot-3, 212 pounds, this right winger has a powerful shot and knack for finding open ice. In Liiga, Nyman finished second overall in goals scored with 26 in 48 games. This achievement is even more impressive considering it’s the fourth-most goals scored by an under-20 player in league history.
Lleyton Roed: A speedy undrafted free agent, Roed’s performance at Bemidji State earned him a Hobey Baker Award nomination. The Kraken quickly signed him to an entry-level contract. Sound Of Hockey’s own Darren Brown recently wrote a profile on Roed.
Eduard Sale: The 2023 first-round pick spent last season in the OHL where he recorded 38 points in 49 games. Given his young age and potential, it’s logical for him to join the Firebirds, allowing the Kraken organization to directly oversee his development. Coach Bylsma has praised Sale, “Being heavy on the forecheck and using the stick and feet to get there. And he’s starting to see more [opportunities on the ice].” Sale could still be returned to the OHL, but the Firebirds are giving him a look to see if he can play at the AHL level. If he can stick, it would allow the Kraken to get more of a hands-on approach to his development.
Returning youngsters Logan Morrison, Tucker Robertson, and Jacob Melanson will aim to build on their successes from last year and take the next step in their development.
Defense corps
Only three players return from last year’s defensive corps. The Firebirds also have three defensive players under the age of 23.
Ville Ottavainen: This big, 6-foot-5 defender has developed nicely. He provided more offensive punch than expected in his first year with the Firebirds, scoring 34 points. The right-shot defenseman has looked impressive in training camp with the Kraken and scored with a rocket one-timer against the Calgary Flames on Monday. He could be the first defenseman called up by Seattle if needed this season.
Ty Nelson: At 5-foot-10, 208 pounds, the sturdy Nelson doesn’t shy away from physical play. He excels at moving the puck and contributes offensively. This will be his first season in the AHL, and watching his game translate at the professional level will be something to monitor.
Charlie Wright: An undrafted free agent who signed a one-year deal with the Firebirds, Wright served as an alternate captain for his WHL team, the Saskatoon Blades. New assistant coach and former head coach of Wright and the Blades, Brennan Sonne, commented, “He’s done everything right. He’s one of the most underrated players in the league, honestly. He’s a pro, through and through. He’s meant the world to the team, as being so steady that whole time. His growth as a player, I just think it’s incredible the way he’s been able to produce offensively while still bringing what he’s great at, which is skating and his ability to shut players down.”
With this roster, the defense is getting slightly younger, going from an average age of 25.1 to 24.8. This assumes Wright (Charlie, not Shane) remains in the AHL. If he is sent to the ECHL, either Ryan Jones or Jake McLaughlin would take the final spot, raising the average age to 25.6.
However, with Cale Fleury being waived Thursday by the Kraken for the purposes of reassigning him to Coachella Valley, the defensive picture could be a little more solidified Friday if he clears.
Goaltending
The Coachella Valley Firebirds will enter the season with Ales Stezka as their starting goaltender. Stezka is the only Firebirds goalie to see preseason action with the Seattle Kraken, appearing in two games. The backup role is less certain, but Niklas Kokko appears to be the frontrunner.
Niklas Kokko / Jessica Campbell
In Kansas City, we would expect the Mavericks to start Jack LaFontaine in goal, with Victor Ostman serving as the backup.
Influx of young talent
The Firebirds roster has experienced a surge of promising Kraken prospects this season. This influx of young talent, combined with the team’s established veterans, promises a thrilling AHL campaign. While the team may have some growing pains, watching the players’ development will be a treat for fans. Firebirds games, along with those of their ECHL affiliate, the Kansas City Mavericks, are available for streaming via subscription on FloHockey.tv.
As the Firebirds gear up for the new season, expectations are high. With a younger squad and a new head coach at the helm, the team is looking to make a strong impression. Will they be able to compete for a playoff spot? Only time will tell.
Let us know your questions and predictions for the upcoming season in the comments below. You can also follow me @blaizg on x.com.
There was a lot to like from the Seattle Kraken’s 6-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers in their preseason finale at Climate Pledge Arena on Wednesday—but also some reason for concern. While players like Shane Wright, Brandon Montour, and Philipp Grubauer indicated they were ready for the regular season, Jared McCann was a late scratch due to a lower-body injury, replaced in the lineup by John Hayden.
After Seattle jumped out to a two-goal lead by the 8:00 mark of the second period, things started to go sideways when Leon Draisaitl scored on the power play at 11:15, and Travis Dermott was left alone in the slot at 13:06 to make it 2-2. But the Kraken put the wheels back on with a Montour missile off a rush and a Wright snipe from the top of the circle.
“They had a few power plays and a 5-on-3 as well,” Wright said. “They scored one, and then they got the second one as well, but we stuck with it, didn’t let it bother us. And it was nice to… obviously, Monty’s goal was great… there was a little momentum, and then to be able to get a little insurance there myself is always nice too.”
Here are our Three Takeaways from Seattle’s 6-2 win over the Oilers to close the preseason.
Takeaway #1: McCann’s injury cause for (some) concern
Walking into the arena Wednesday, I was just hoping for good health for both teams. There has been a rash of nasty preseason injuries to key players around the league in the last week, and both Edmonton and Seattle had close to their full regular-season lineups going. The last thing I wanted to see was anybody getting hurt and missing real games because of something that happens in a meaningless one.
Technically, every player who started the game for the Kraken also finished it, though Jordan Eberle and Brandon Tanev each picked up bruises from pucks finding unprotected areas around their ankles and legs. But McCann, who was slated to participate, disappeared from warmups before line rushes and did not play.
All Dan Bylsma said after the game was, “Just a lower-body injury, as reported before the game, and it’s day-to-day at this point.”
That doesn’t sound too bad, and we don’t get the sense that the injury is particularly serious, but this is the first time we’ve heard Bylsma say anything other than “maintenance” in reference to a player missing time. So, it’s at least worth monitoring when the Kraken return to practice on Saturday.
Takeaway #2: Shane Wright is ready for the NHL
I also wrote about Wright’s performance in Three Takeaways after Seattle’s 4-3 overtime loss to Calgary on Monday. I thought he was one of Seattle’s better players that night, but he one-upped himself on Wednesday against Edmonton.
For his efforts against the Oilers, Wright was rewarded with two pretty-looking goals. The first came after Montour broke up a play at the defensive-zone blue line and sent Oliver Bjorkstrand on a footrace. Bjorkstrand won the race, and Wright created some spin-o-rama magic.
“Borky made a great play, just made kind of a chip to the area, and then I was able to find a little spot in the middle,” Wright said. “I just kind of tried to spin around and get it on net, and was able to go five-hole.”
Wright wasn’t done there, following up Montour’s rocket of a shot that made it 3-2 at 18:34 of the second period with a snipe of his own from the top of the right circle.
“It was great patience from Rig [Jamie Oleksiak] in the neutral zone, and a good spot from Tolvy to find me in the middle,” Wright said. “Tolvy did a great job taking the D, and I had a lot of space to walk in and was able to finish it off.”
After seeing how Wright has performed in these last couple of games, especially now that the competition has ramped up to NHL-caliber, Kraken fans should be excited about what the youngster might bring this season.
“I like his game,” Montour said of Wright. “He’s a solid boy. Obviously, he’s growing still, but he skates like the wind and gets to the hard areas. You saw that today. He had a nice one in front and a nice shot as well. So he has it all, and for a young guy coming in with confidence after a good camp, that’s going to be good for us moving forward.”
And it’s not just the goals. I’ve watched Wright closely and have seen him making little dangles and passes through defenders’ legs and under their sticks—moves a player only pulls off if he’s feeling confident. Wright is exuding confidence right now.
Bylsma has been careful to remind us that Wright is still just 20 years old, but he too is encouraged by what he’s seeing. “I just think it speaks to the maturity of his game,” Bylsma said. “I don’t think there’s any doubt or question about his skill, skating ability, or shot. But he’s gaining the confidence to show and use it more often.”
Takeaway #3: An important night for Philipp Grubauer
Speaking from experience, it’s really important for a goaltender to get a game under the belt where your performance feels solid. You’re tracking pucks well, making some saves you perhaps shouldn’t, and helping your team to a victory.
While both goalies have shown flashes of strong play at times during the preseason, neither Joey Daccord nor Philipp Grubauer had been stellar coming into Wednesday’s contest. But Grubauer showed he’s ready for the regular season, stopping 28 of 30 Oilers shots, including plenty of dangerous looks from Edmonton’s lethal power play, which had five opportunities on the night.
Grubauer said he was happy to see plenty of action in this one as he continues building toward the regular season. “The more chances they have, the better it is for us goalies to get into the game,” Grubauer said. “They have a couple of boys back there who can make plays and find some seams, and I think today was a really realistic game.”
Bylsma called it “very important” for Grubauer to have this game to close out the preseason. “I thought he was outstanding throughout the game,” Bylsma said. “The PK there at 5-on-3, and then a couple of big stops in the third. He was real solid back there for us, and it was great to see.”
Bonus Takeaway: Montour continues to impress
I promise I won’t write about Montour after every game… Unless he’s impressive in every game, which he was again on Wednesday. His goal was a thing of beauty, flying into the offensive zone and leaning into a slap shot that overpowered Olivier Rodrigue. Montour does everything well—from skating to decision-making to shooting—and he is so fun to watch.
Montour closed out the game with a goal and an assist and led all players with 23:31 of ice time.
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The Kraken have the next two days off and will go on a bonding trip during that time. They will return to practice Saturday morning.
Darren Brown
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at soundofhockey.com and the host of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is a member of the PHWA and is also usually SOH’s Twitter intern (but please pretend you don’t know that). Follow him @DarrenFunBrown and @sound_hockey or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
The Kraken lost again Monday, 4-3 in overtime, to the Calgary Flames, who remain undefeated in their meaningless preseason games. The story of this one was Seattle’s lack of punch on the power play, which had been showing signs of promise. Thankfully, Shane Wright finally broke through with the man-advantage on the Kraken’s sixth (!!!) power play of the night, which led to a fake loser point in the fake standings.
Andre Burakovsky returned from a minor injury, and Vince Dunn got his first game action of the preseason.
Here are our Three Takeaways from the Kraken’s 4-3 overtime loss to the Flames.
Takeaway #1: Power play finally adjusts
It was frustrating to see the Kraken get power play after power play in the second period, including what should have been an extended 5-on-3 (though that was mostly negated by Wright flinging Rasmus Andersson’s stick up into the rafters of the Saddledome) and continually fail to convert.
It was even more frustrating to see 19-year-old forward prospect Samuel Honzek burn around Dunn like he was a cone and then dangle past Joey Daccord’s poke check, tucking in a shorthanded goal to make it 3-2 Flames.
While there was still plenty of player movement with the man advantage, the passing wasn’t very crisp for most of the opportunities. It seemed like the Kraken were trying to force passes through seams that weren’t there, resulting in turnovers and easy clears for Calgary.
After John Hayden drew a holding-the-stick penalty on Blake Coleman with seven seconds left in the second period, Seattle clearly addressed what was happening on the power play during intermission.
When they emerged from the dressing room, they funneled more pucks toward Flames goalie Dan Vladar and stopped forcing passes through the middle. After Vladar got bumped and lost his stick (he argued for goalie interference), Wright finally got a handle on a Burakovsky rebound and fired it in for his first goal of the preseason.
While we’ve been singing the praises of Seattle’s new and improved power play during this preseason, there’s still plenty of room for improvement. It was good to see an in-game adjustment, though.
Takeaway #2: Mixed results for Dunn, Burakovsky
The team has been markedly cautious with Dunn, who missed 23 games with injury in 2023-24, including the last seven games of the season. Before Monday, he had been a full participant in everything but had not yet skated in a preseason game.
He had some good moments where he looked fast and dynamic and nearly scored a buzzer-beater at the end of the second period, ringing a slap shot loudly off the post. He also had the second assist on Wright’s power-play goal and looked confident as the quarterback during the sequence that led to the tally.
But Dunn also had some not-so-good moments, getting torched by Honzek on his shorthanded goal and looking confused when he got caught in a partial 2-on-1 rush between Andrei Kuzmenko and Nazem Kadri in overtime. That one ended up in the back of Seattle’s net and ended the game.
Dunn led all Kraken players with 23:32 of ice time. He finished the night minus-two with one assist and one shot on goal.
Burakovsky, meanwhile, was Seattle’s best player when he last dressed for a game on Sept. 24 against the Canucks. But since then, he took multiple “maintenance” days and even donned a red non-contact jersey for a practice, raising more questions about his always tenuous health. So, it was good to see him back in the lineup, which indicates that he is fully healthy (the team wouldn’t rush him back from anything during preseason).
He didn’t look as dominant to me in this game as he did against Vancouver, but he still had an impact with the primary assist on Wright’s goal and started the play that led to Eeli Tolvanen’s marker off a beautiful Chandler Stephenson pass three minutes into the game.
Takeaway #3: A nice night for Wright
I liked Shane Wright’s game Monday. He’s looked confident and ready for full-time NHL duties throughout the preseason, but he seemed even more settled against Calgary, especially later in the game. Aside from his goal, he made several sneaky little passes that created opportunities for teammates, and he led all Kraken players with four shots on goal.
Seattle is banking on Wright to be a key contributor as a rookie this season, and this game gave me more confidence that he’s ready for that kind of role.
Bonus Takeaway: That was a sick pass by Stephenson
I don’t have much to say here, other than when passes like this work, they look really awesome. This one worked. And it looked awesome.
Darren Brown
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at soundofhockey.com and the host of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is a member of the PHWA and is also usually SOH’s Twitter intern (but please pretend you don’t know that). Follow him @DarrenFunBrown and @sound_hockey or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
The Kraken lost 5-4 to the Oilers on Saturday in what would have been a crushing and embarrassing defeat if it were a regular-season game. Thankfully, this was just a meaningless preseason contest, so none of us need to lose sleep over it.
After conceding another early goal, just like they did last Sunday at home against the Calgary Flames, the Kraken bounced back and took control for a while, even briefly holding a two-goal lead late in the second period. But they gave up the dreaded response goal just 27 seconds later, and it was all downhill from there.
Still, there are some positive signs from this team. We have yet to see a full NHL lineup iced by the Kraken, and yet they’re showing significant progress in how they are playing.
Here are our Three Takeaways from the Kraken’s 5-4 preseason loss to the Oilers.
Takeaway #1: Tough night for Grubi
So far, it’s safe to say Joey Daccord has looked better in the preseason than Philipp Grubauer. After Grubauer’s first outing against Calgary last Sunday—where he seemed to be trying to catch up to game speed—he did look better for most of the game Saturday against the Oilers. There were some strong sequences in which he challenged shooters and tracked the puck well, kicking rebounds past crashing Edmonton forwards and recovering in time to stop the second and third waves of shooters.
But there were also a couple of gaffes, especially on the game-winning goal by Raphael Lavoie—the fifth goal allowed by the Kraken netminder on that night. On that one, Lavoie was in a good shooting position, but it was an unscreened, undeflected shot that slipped right through Grubi’s wickets at a key moment in this meaningless contest. You could tell from his reaction that Grubauer knew he should have had that one.
We chatted with Grubauer after the morning skate on Saturday, and he definitely sounded like he wanted more game action to continue ramping up. He did look sharper Saturday than last Sunday, so it was mostly a step in the right direction. Hopefully his final outing of the preseason (probably coming Wednesday at home) will be sharper still.
Grubauer finished the night with 31 saves, good for an .861 save percentage.
Takeaway #2: Kraken power play shows more signs of life
Over the past few seasons, the Kraken power play has gotten so stagnant. The players didn’t move around much last season, and as the campaign progressed, it felt like things only got more predictable. However, what we’ve seen from the power play in the last couple of games has been exciting. The players are moving a lot, and it seems to be throwing off opposing penalty killers.
On this night, it wasn’t even a full NHL-caliber power play that got the job done. Instead, it was a mix of prospects and projected AHLers who whipped the puck around the offensive zone before 2023 first-round draft pick Eduard Sale got his first goal in Kraken colors.
It was a beautiful play. Brandon Biro took a pass on the left half-wall and started moving toward the net to draw defenders. He dished it down low to Ryan Winterton, who then tossed a perfect saucer pass up and over a sprawled Mattias Ekholm, dropping it right onto Sale’s tape.
The power play only converted once, but seeing production and positive signs at this stage of the preseason gives Kraken fans reason to hope for continued success with the manpower advantage during the regular season.
It’s worth noting, however, that the power play allowed a short-handed goal to Vasily Podkolzin that tied the game 4-4 in the third period. But, as the Kraken social media admins would say, it’s preseason, so that didn’t count.
I’ve previously hypothesized that the battle for the last roster spot(s) seems to be boiling down to Winterton, Ben Meyers, and John Hayden. After an outstanding game Friday against Vancouver, Winterton was right back in the lineup Saturday, as was Meyers. Hayden also returned to action after making his physical presence known in Tuesday’s game against the Canucks.
All three players had an impact on the game Saturday, with Winterton beautifully setting up Sale’s goal in the first period, Hayden driving hard to the net and getting rewarded for it in the second, and Meyers looking off Biro and scoring off a 2-on-1 in the second period, while also adding a second assist on Jacob Melanson’s tally in the first.
Who coach Dan Bylsma ultimately picks to stay with the team out of training camp remains about as clear as mud.
What’s interesting, though, is that while I’m less convinced the Kraken will make a trade to become cap compliant than I was previously, Seattle is showing it has depth players who could theoretically backfill in the lineup if a player like, say, Brandon Tanev were to be dealt. Continue to keep an eye on this battle for roster spots.
Darren Brown
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at soundofhockey.com and the host of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is a member of the PHWA and is also usually SOH’s Twitter intern (but please pretend you don’t know that). Follow him @DarrenFunBrown and @sound_hockey or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
