With the kickoff of the NHL season this week, it is a good time to breakdown the 2022-23 schedule. Here, we drill into who is logging the most frequent flier miles, which teams have the most back-to-back games, and which teams will appear on the most national television games.
Travel distance
Comparing 2021-22 to 2022-23 is not a fair comparable due to the impacts COVID had on the schedule, with several games being postponed and rescheduled throughout the season. If you were to compare this year’s schedule to last year’s planned schedule, though, the median travel for last year would have been slightly less due to the condensed nature of last season.
Here is how travel distances for the 2022-23 season stacks up by team.
The Pacific Division teams tend to have the most travel miles in a season, so it is no surprise to see those teams around the top. The Florida Panthers are the only non-Pacific team in the top seven this season.
Here is how the travel miles split out by division.
Based on that perspective, the schedule looks encouraging for Seattle, considering the Kraken will travel less than five division rivals.
Number of road trips
Travel distance is one aspect of evaluating the challenges of a team’s schedule, but the quantity of road trips is another variable to consider. Here is the breakdown of the number of road trips by team.
The Kraken are tied for having the third fewest road trips this year. Here is how their road trip and homestands break down throughout the year.
Of course, having fewer road trips also means longer trips at times, so is that better for Seattle? That’s hard to say.
Back-to-back games
Last year, the Kraken played 13 sets of back-to-back games. When playing in the second of back-to-back’s, they accrued just six points, or 23 percent of the points available in those games. In all other games, they accumulated 43 percent of the points available. Playing back-to-back games was a challenge for the Kraken last season. As a whole, the league will see fewer back-to-back games now that the NHL calendar is on a more traditional schedule post-COVID.
It is nice to see the Kraken will play the second fewest back-to-back games in 2022-23.
Bonus content: NHL national TV schedule breakdown
While we are talking about schedules, let us take a quick peek at the NHL national TV schedule for this year.
As the graph shows, there are plans for 14 more nationally televised NHL games this season than there were last season. Note that the 2021-22 numbers were based on preseason reported schedule that was eventually impacted by COVID cancelations and rescheduled games.
Here is how this season breaks down by network.
TNT, which has the rights to broadcast the Stanley Cup Final this season, added 12 more games compared to last season. ESPN added 10 more games to the flagship network and five games to ABC. The ESPN+/Hulu exclusive scheduled games are down to 53 from 75 in 2021-22.
NHL TV schedule by team
The 10 nationally televised Kraken games for 2022-23 is down from 13 games in 2021-22. If you want to mark your calendars for those games, here is the list.
The real season begins this week. Enjoy the games!
SEATTLE — A quiet Wednesday morning at the Kraken Community Iceplex is given noisy life as 60 children bound through the front door with squeals of joy, anticipation, and excitement. The children sit on benches patiently as their teachers and chaperones lace skates to their feet. They are escorted out to the ice where they grip orange cones, many apprehensive about letting their skates touch the ice.
It is the first day on the ice for the kids, many of whom have never been inside an ice rink before.
Day one
Wednesday was day one of a learn to skate program for children whose families participate in early learning centers with the Refugee Women’s Alliance (ReWA) and the Kraken’s One Roof Foundation. It’s the second year of the program that runs for 32 weeks. At the end of the on-ice session, the same children who dared not to let go of the cones on the ice in the beginning were flying around it.
“The children are working individually to build their confidence but also working as a team,” Susan Lee, ReWA operations director for early learning centers said. “They know that when they fall down, they will get up and somebody is going to give them a hand. But they can also do it themselves, and that’s something that a parent had shared with me on their first day last year.”
ReWA has been serving the local community for the past 35 years and is nationally renowned for its work with refugee and immigrant women and their families, taking a holistic approach to promote integration and self-sufficiency. The goal is to quickly and effectively stabilize clients, promote acculturation, increase language proficiency, and improve employability.
Children cling to orange cones before learning to skate
The learn to play clinics are part of that goal as well as opening access to children who might not otherwise feel welcome on the ice.
“We wanted to remove barriers to entry of the sport of ice hockey and to ice skating, and transportation is a huge barrier,” Kraken community engagements and youth access specialist Andrew Bloom said. “We found this group that we could work with, to bring the kids here to the Iceplex and remove that transportation barrier on top of the cost barrier. This is a very diverse group of kids and having them start at such a young age, they’re going to have the same advantage as any other kid.”
On the ice, the four- and five-year-old’s participating go through the trials of learning to skate. That includes pushing objects down the ice like giant cones, chairs, and plastic seals.
There is also the expected falls, but they get up every time, and the one constant among the diverse group is the smiles and laughter.
“I can speak on behalf of the families and the children that this is an amazing opportunity to really bridge the gap of equity and accessibility in early learning,” Lee said. “Especially for ice skating, and hockey, which is a really expensive sport. This is ensuring that our early learners, who I would say about 95 percent are low-income families, children of color, families of color are now able to have a foundation for future growth and this really opens their eyes as well for endless possibilities. These are future Olympians and hockey players.”
The Kraken skills coaches and youth hockey coaches help the on-ice instruction. ReWA serves families who speak up to 60 different languages, but a common language of ice skating becomes the norm for the kids.
Buoy brings added excitement
Near the end of Wednesday’s sessions, the Kraken mascot, Buoy, took the ice to the delight of the skaters who mobbed the mascot and posed for a group photo before they shuffled off the ice with just as much excitement as when they took to the ice 45 minutes earlier.
Hockey is the Kraken’s main business, but that’s not the ultimate point of the learn-to-skate partnership with ReWA.
“It’s learn to skate first,” Bloom said. “We definitely introduce hockey after they get comfortable on the ice. In the coming weeks we’ll introduce hockey sticks and do a little learn to play hockey for free type of event and just get them exposed to it.”
Whether the kids move on to hockey or into figure skating and other skating sports is irrelevant. The benefits go beyond the ice and sport.
It’s not only fun but helping in these young children’s development.
Buoy was a hit among the children
“It’s about social and emotional skills,” Lee said pointing to a young girl skating a chair around the ice. “It’s about their physical skill as well gross motor skills, their fine motor skills and cognitive as well. All of these are in place as the children are learning. For example, this little girl, she’s coordinating her skates and her skating, right? But it’s using her audio and her visual, gross motor skills, and learning from one another through modeling.
So, there’s a lot of learning. Yes, you’re having fun, but there’s a tremendous amount of learning. These kids here, they’re all from different countries, different cultures and this is really exposing them to something that is tangible.”
Watching from just outside the glass were the parents, armed with cell phones to record the memories through picture and video.
The smiles outside the rink were just as plentiful as the kids on the ice.
In the build up of the Kraken becoming an official NHL team, executives from the franchise to be spoke a lot about the importance of being more than just a hockey team. They wanted to be a community partner, and a partnership such as the one with ReWA is proving it wasn’t just lip service.
“As an immigrant child myself, this would have been something that I wish I had,” Lee said. “This is a dream come true for me to be able to see 60 of my kids in our programming, having this ability, this accessibility, to enjoy themselves and not think about the disparity and where they come from. This allows them a space to really express themselves. It gives me hope that corporations such as the Kraken can think about investing in the future of early learning. I’m grateful, I’m very hopeful, and I hope that other professional sports team will follow their example.”
The guys at the Sound Of Hockey Podcast have decided they want to *try* to increase the number of episodes they deliver to you this season, so they’re trying something new here. For as many weeks as they can, John, Andy, and Darren are going to record a second episode that is shorter, more raw, and follows less of a formula than the regular weekly “integer” episodes, which will remain completely unchanged.
Let the guys know what you think of this idea by way of a five-star review. 🙂
For this first “.5” episode, Andy and Darren chat with Coachella Valley Firebirds assistant coach, Jessica Campbell. It is an incredible interview that the guys think you will absolutely love.
The guys at the Sound Of Hockey Podcast have decided they want to *try* to increase the number of episodes they deliver to you this season, so they’re trying something new here. For as many weeks as they can, John, Andy, and Darren are going to record a second episode that is shorter, more raw, and follows less of a formula than the regular weekly “integer” episodes, which will remain completely unchanged.
Let the guys know what you think of this idea by way of a five-star review. 🙂
For this first “.5” episode, Andy and Darren chat with Coachella Valley Firebirds assistant coach, Jessica Campbell. It is an incredible interview that the guys think you will absolutely love.
Though Sunday was a scheduled day off for Seattle Kraken players, there was some big roster news announced. On the last day teams were allowed to place players on waivers before the regular season, Seattle made what appeared to be its final cuts before opening night Wednesday. Defenseman Michal Kempny and forward John Hayden were waived with intent of assigning them to the AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds. We think this means Cale Fleury and Daniel Sprong have made the team (at least for now).
There’s still some murkiness, as the roster is still over the 23-man limit, but more on that in a bit.
Meanwhile, goalie Joey Daccord and forward Alex True cleared waivers and were assigned to Coachella Valley. Daccord staying in the organization meant Kraken fans could breathe a sigh of relief, as there was plenty of speculation the popular backstop could get snatched up. That would have made the Kraken organization very thin in the goal crease. Remember, Magnus Hellberg got claimed by Ottawa on Monday, so the Kraken were down to Philipp Grubauer, Martin Jones, Daccord, and Callum Booth as viable netminding options for their NHL and AHL teams. Keeping Daccord makes things much easier on that front.
Kraken roster down to 24
There’s still at least one roster move left to come, as Seattle needs to get down to 23 players on its roster before taking on the Ducks on Wednesday. Two remaining players have been banged up in camp, though, so it is our assumption that this piece has already worked itself out. Joonas Donskoi left Seattle’s Sept. 29 preseason game in Vancouver after colliding with Kole Lind in the second period and hasn’t been seen on the ice since. Coach Dave Hakstol has maintained Donskoi is day to day.
Additionally, Jaden Schwartz left Friday’s preseason finale in Edmonton and is also day to day, according to Hakstol. Before going down the tunnel that night, Schwartz was seen holding his upper thigh or groin area. He did not practice on Saturday.
Jaden Schwartz left the game in the second period tonight. Believe this was the last time he was on the ice… pic.twitter.com/PU3EorN3yZ
Our guess is that one of these two players will hit injured reserve, which brings the roster to 23.
Daniel Sprong earned this opportunity
Worth noting, Sprong’s inclusion on the opening night roster has not officially been announced by the team. He also did not participate in practice on Saturday, but Hakstol called it a personal day off the ice. Again, there’s some murkiness, but the fact he didn’t get placed on waivers Sunday tells us Seattle intends to keep him.
It is remarkable to see Sprong still on the roster, considering what has happened with him since last season’s trade deadline. Acquired in the deal that sent Marcus Johansson to Washington, Sprong was not tendered a qualifying offer at the end of the season and became an unrestricted free agent. Without a contract, he entered Kraken camp on a professional try-out and impressed every step of the way.
Sprong scored two goals in the preseason and earned praise from Hakstol for his play in all three zones, a consistent knock on Sprong’s game throughout his NHL career. The improved 200-foot play resulted in Sprong signing a two-way contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level or $325,000 at the AHL level.
Now, it does appear he’ll break camp with the Kraken, and assuming that is the case, it is a well-earned opportunity and a good example of why players accept PTO deals.
Cale Fleury beats out Michal Kempny
We always knew there would be a battle for the seventh and final spot on Seattle’s blue line. From the jump, it was plain to see that Kempny and Fleury were the two combatants trying to beat out one another, and Fleury ended up as the last man standing.
The 23-year-old, right-shot defenseman played 41 games as a rookie for Montreal in 2019-20, but didn’t see NHL action again until February of last season with Seattle. In all, he played nine games with the Kraken in 2021-22 and did not record a point.
Kempny, who has had several major injury issues in recent years, faced an uphill battle after he too got banged up in the Sept. 29 game. He missed several days of camp and spent time in a red non-contact jersey before getting back as a full participant in the last week.
Depth chart
We haven’t confirmed Schwartz or Donskoi will be on IR, but we are guessing at least one will be there, as discussed above. So, with that in mind, here’s how things look for Seattle’s depth chart. Based on how long it has been since Donskoi participated in practice, we predict he will land on IR, opening the spot for Sprong. Lines are, as always, very much subject to change.
Forwards
Jared McCann // Matty Beniers // Andre Burakovsky Jaden Schwartz // Alex Wennberg // Oliver Bjorkstrand Yanni Gourde // Shane Wright // Jordan Eberle Ryan Donato // Morgan Geekie // Brandon Tanev Daniel Sprong Karson Kuhlman Joonas Donskoi (potential IR)
Defense
Vince Dunn // Adam Larsson Jamie Oleksiak // Justin Schultz Carson Soucy // Will Borgen Cale Fleury
Goalies
Philipp Grubauer Martin Jones Chris Driedger (will be on IR, maybe LTIR)
Friday’s Kraken preseason finale against the Edmonton Oilers felt mostly celebratory. At least, it felt celebratory until the last few minutes, when things went sideways… then not… and then sideways again. Philipp Grubauer had a great game, until he tried to clear the puck out of Seattle’s zone late in the third period. The Seattle netminder partially whiffed on the clearing attempt, and the puck caromed off Leon Draisaitl and right into the net with just 4:33 left in the game. Oopsy daisy.
To Seattle’s credit, Jared McCann leveled the score temporarily with a power-play blast at 17:42, but Evander Kane got the game winner just 19 seconds later and sent the Kraken home sad.
Here are our Three Takeaways from the final Kraken preseason game.
Takeaway #1: Daniel Sprong makes his final statement
He would need to clear waivers if the Kraken try to sneak him through to the Coachella Valley Firebirds, so if that’s the play, there’s a chance he gets claimed by another team. Waivers or not, the Dutch forward has put himself in a great position to remain an NHL player this season, something that felt like the opposite of a sure thing a month ago.
In his final opportunity to prove that he belonged, Sprong wasted no time in getting himself on the scoresheet. Will Borgen ripped a slapshot from the right point about 12:45 into the game. Sprong whiffed on the rebound, but he stayed with it, found the puck bouncing around, and popped it over the outstretched pad of Jack Campbell to give the Kraken a 1-0 lead.
“If you want to score in this league, you have to find some of those on the inside,” coach Dave Hakstol said. “[Sprong] was able to do that on that first goal, so working to get inside and be around for some of those second [opportunities], to get them back on net is important, so it was a good goal by him.”
The Kraken had just two power plays in the game, and guess who showed up in the left circle to start the first one. Yes, Sprong was floating in the “Alex Ovechkin office,” waiting for a chance to blast away, but the puck never came to him. Even so, he has surely given this coaching staff a very difficult decision to make.
If Sprong does stay, who goes?
Takeaway #2: Did Jaden Schwartz get injured?
One of the refreshing sights to see in this training camp has been Jaden Schwartz seemingly at full strength. The top-six forward missed significant time last season with an undisclosed upper-body injury, but has spoken positively about his health status during camp.
He left Friday’s game in the second period and did not return. With just over 12 minutes left in the frame, Schwartz took a light tap on the left hand, then went to the bench and appeared to be holding his upper thigh area.
Jaden Schwartz left the game in the second period tonight. Believe this was the last time he was on the ice… pic.twitter.com/PU3EorN3yZ
It is hard to say from the video above what happened to him, but a healthy Jaden Schwartz is hugely important for Seattle’s chances this season. Here’s hoping it’s nothing serious.
Takeaway #3: Plenty of positives
A 5-3 loss wasn’t the outcome Kraken fans would have wanted, but 4-2-0 is a fine preseason record. And frankly, Seattle had every chance to win that game on Friday, save for an ugly miscue late in the game and a lack of focus seconds after scoring to make up for said miscue.
Things we liked were Sprong showing up again, Grubauer’s game through two and a half periods (until the late mishandle), McCann getting on the board for the first time this preseason, and Matty Beniers scoring his fourth goal in four outings.
“There were a lot of good pieces,” Hakstol said. “Tonight was more complete than we’ve been in the first four.”
This team looks much better than it did last preseason, from the goal crease out. As we head to the regular season, there is a lot to like about this roster, regardless of who the last few cuts end up being.
“You don’t get second chances now, we start next week,” added Hakstol. “We’ve had a hard-working camp. You know, we have a lot of guys that have had good camps, now we have a couple of days to get a little bit of rest, and then it’s for real, and we’ll get going in four or five days.”
This is a fun episode of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast, featuring another big-time guest. Kraken goalie Chris Driedger stops by for a relatively short interview to talk about his new charity, Driedger’s Keepers, as well as how he’s feeling after his offseason knee injury and his expectations for the Kraken this season.
Aside from the Driedger interview, John, Andy, and Darren answered a whole bunch of questions from the Mailbag, which got plenty of great participation this week and leads to some spirited conversation.
Before getting to those parts of the show, though, you’ll get a breakdown of the three Kraken preseason games that have been played since the last episode, a discussion on who got sent down and/or waived by Seattle, and thoughts on who will make the opening night roster.
After the Driedger interview, the show shifts to segments, which this week include Goalie Gear Corner, Weekly One-Timers, and Tweets of the Week.
One of the biggest challenges the Seattle Kraken had last year was scoring goals. The Kraken ranked 28th in the league with only 213 goals scored for the entire 2021-22 season. A key component of this challenge was the lack of opportunity and success on the power play. In this edition of Data Dump, we are going to explore the information we have around Seattle’s struggles with the manpower advantage last season and how the team is addressing the issue.
Power play opportunity
The Kraken had the third fewest power play goals in the league last year with just 32 such markers. This ranked ahead of only the Philadelphia Flyers (30) and Arizona Coyotes (28). There are two components that go into logging power play goals, number of power play opportunities and power play percentage. Let us look at those two numbers from last season.
As you can see, the Kraken were toward the bottom of the heap in power plays drawn (opportunities) and power play percentage (execution). These two statistics are not necessarily correlated. Toronto ranked 21st in number of power play opportunities but first in power play percentage. Similarly, Philadelphia ranked 16th in opportunities but last in power play execution.
Power play trends
One explanation could attribute the lack of execution on the power play to the unfamiliarity the players had with each other in Seattle’s inaugural season. Unfortunately, when we look at the power play over the season, it ebbed and flowed but never showed a consistent improvement.
Drawing penalties
As we mentioned above, part of the reason for Seattle’s low power-play goals output is due to the lack of opportunities. To get opportunities, you need players that draw penalties, so let us look at who drew penalties for the Kraken last season.
One encouraging item that stands out is that the players that drew the most penalties on the 2021-22 Seattle Kraken remain on the team for the 2022-23 season. We can take the analysis one step further by looking at the players by minutes played versus the number of drawn penalties from last season. Plus, we can overlay the new Kraken players to get a more complete picture for this season.
In addition to Oliver Bjorkstrand and Andre Burakovsky posting above-average numbers in drawing penalties, we also believe Matty Beniers could be one of the team leaders in penalties drawn this coming season based on what we have seen during the preseason. His numbers from last year hint at this.
Deployment changes
Getting more chances on the power play is one thing, but the team will need to take advantage of those opportunities. We know changes on the power play are coming, but before we get into that, here are the power play minute leaders from last season.
We already know the power play time taken by Mark Giordano, Calle Jarnkrok, and Marcus Johansson will need to be replaced.
Based on coach Dave Hakstol’s deployment during the preseason, we anticipate the changes to be more significant than just filling the vacancies left by those three players. The first power play unit is solid on paper, with Justin Schultz, Alex Wennberg, and the Killer B’s of Beniers, Bjorkstrand, and Burakovsky. The unit has not been remarkable during the preseason, but there have been moments where you can tell it will be just a matter of time before they really start clicking.
The second power play unit is still a work in progress, but looking at the remaining players on the roster, we like the options. Jared McCann, Jordan Eberle, Jaden Schwartz, Vince Dunn, and Yanni Gourde feels like the right combo to start the season with Shane Wright and Ryan Donato as options to slide in with those players.
Do not expect instant success when the season starts. Chemistry amongst players takes time, and when you consider the new faces on that first unit, we need to be patient for these players to develop that chemistry.
Improved Kraken power play will be critical
The Kraken will need to see improvements in multiple aspects of their game to expect a different outcome in season two. Behind goaltending, power play opportunities and production could be huge in deciding if Seattle plays meaningful games in March.
We think this chart sums up nicely the relationship between success on the power play and postseason aspirations.
With the season opener only a week away, we felt the time was nigh to take stock in what we’ve seen from the Seattle Kraken in preseason and training camp and look ahead to which players will be impactful in the team’s second year.
Our own Darren Brown and Curtis Isacke got together for a written discussion that assigns predictive superlatives to certain members of the team.
Enjoy!
Most improved
Darren Brown – I think there are two obvious answers for this first one, but I’ll say the one I think is most conspicuous and important and see if Curtis takes the bait for the other one.
The Kraken need Philipp Grubauer to be better this season, no doubt, but it also feels like this is an extremely safe bet for a player that will be much improved compared to 2021-22.
There were 53 goalies that played at least 25 NHL games last season. Of those 53 goalies, Grubauer ranked 53rd in save percentage at .889, yet his career save percentage is .914. In 2020-21 in Colorado, he was outstanding with a .922 save percentage and 1.95 goals against average and was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy. He may not return to that level, but last season is certainly an outlier when you consider his body of work.
What’s really encouraging on the Grubauer front, though, is that he has looked confident and solid in training camp and preseason. He has said positive things about working with new goalie coach Steve Briere, and in a game and a half of preseason action, he has not allowed a goal.
Even a mediocre season for Grubauer could mean a lot more wins for the Kraken.
Philipp Grubauer tends his goal in a preseason game on Sept. 27 against the Flames. (Photo/Brian Liesse)
Curtis Isacke – I know I’m inviting a rejoinder from the perspective of a goaltender, but, from the outside, large variations in goaltender performance from season to season are not atypical. And precedent suggests we should see a very large bounceback from Seattle’s German-born netminder. Given the incredible importance of goalie play to wins and losses, Grubauer is a good choice, Darren, and probably the right one.
Beyond Grubauer, there are several candidates that underperformed last year and could be expected to “improve” this season. Joonas Donskoi is particularly notable, but I’m not certain he’ll receive the regular ice time this season necessary to facilitate a rebound.
So, if we’re talking about statistical improvement, I’ll go with Alex Wennberg. I thought he had a bit of an up-and-down first year with Seattle, but he certainly was not a bad player by any means. I’m picking him because I think the 28-year-old will be in a prime position to excel this year. On one side, he will have a legitimate top-six scorer in either Andre Burakovsky or Oliver Bjorkstrand (it seems to be trending toward the latter), and on the other side he may be supported by the skating tornado that is Yanni Gourde. After compiling just 37 points last season, I’ll project Wennberg tops 50 points this year (let’s say 12 goals and 43 assists) and, on the defensive end, sheds the ghastly +/- of -26.
I think Matty Beniers is primed to take the biggest leap in terms of overall contribution to the team, but I doubt he’ll exceed or come close to maintaining his point pace from last year over a full 82 games. Jaden Schwartz and Brandon Tanev can certainly be expected to return more value this year, but their situations are injury-related. Who was the second player you were thinking of, Darren? I’ll guess Donskoi.
DB – No rejoinder from me. Growing up as a goalie, I would stink one year and be great the next. It just happens. And Donskoi is correct. Good guess.
Surprise player to “take a step”
CI – When I think about a player “taking a step,” I think of a young player developing and improving at the NHL level. With the Kraken short on such players – only two likely to have regular roles come to mind – I’ll go with Will Borgen. The 25-year-old defenseman has size and speed and uses his impressive physicality to deny the blue line and clear the goal crease. What’s more encouraging, he showed improved stick skills last year, and that has carried over into camp this season. (There have even been calls for Will Borgen to take a turn in shootouts. I won’t go there, but he has been better.) The opportunity is there to play a full season and deliver solid/average production.
Will Borgen could play a bigger role for the Kraken this season. (Photo/Brian Liesse)
If we’re not confining this to young players, my surprise pick is Justin Schultz. I think there are plenty of reasons to be concerned about his defensive game at even strength, but if he is given the opportunity to run the first unit power play, he should deliver a lot of value there. As an aside, in my ideal world, I’d send out five forwards on the first unit, with Matty Beniers running things from the blue line, but I don’t think coach Dave Hakstol will do that. Short of that, Schultz is clearly the best bet in my opinion. He moves well with the puck, makes good decisions in space, and can deliver accurate passes.
DB – I love that Borgen call. Anecdotally speaking, it does seem like he’s primed to play a regular role this season. With him and fellow right-shot defensemen Schultz and Adam Larsson, Seattle could have a nicely balanced blue line for the first time.
Also, for the record, I do not agree with your premise of putting five forwards on the power play, and I’m quite content with Matty in the right circle.
For my pick, I *want* to go with Morgan Geekie here, but he still seems destined for a bottom-six or even thirteenth-or-fourteenth forward role. So, instead, I’m going to go with another fairly obvious option and say Shane Wright.
General manager Ron Francis said to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic that he thinks Wright will be with the team all season. If that comes to fruition, it will be fun to watch Wright develop as an NHLer before our eyes.
In his preseason performances, he hasn’t jumped off the page, but there have been moments of brilliance. We expect a relatively slow start, but as he adjusts to the speed of the game, don’t be surprised to see Wright producing and playing a key role in the second half of the season.
Leading scorer
DB – Alright, I know we’re still supposed to be tempering expectations for the 19-year-old rookie, but I’m going to go with the grain and with what my eyes have seen in camp and preseason. Matty Beniers looks even better than he did during his 10-game stint at the end of last season, when he scored nine points. He’s stronger now, his shot is more lethal than I remember, and he looks comfortable in his surroundings.
The proof has been in the pudding so far, as he has goals in all three of the preseason games he’s played, all coming off wicked shots. We expect Beniers to center one of the top two lines all season long and be a shooter on the top power play unit. With those opportunities should come plenty of points, and–dare I say–Calder Trophy consideration.
Matty Beniers looks ready to take a leading role for the Kraken. (Photo/Brian Liesse)
CI – As bizarre as it is to type, I’d agree that Beniers probably should be the betting favorite to lead the team in points. The two point leaders from last season – Jared McCann (50) and Yanni Gourde (48) – haven’t even been skating with the first unit power play so far so I would not necessarily expect total point production improvement from either player. Andre Burakovsky and Oliver Bjorkstand will be considered wildly successful acquisitions if they get into this same range. With Beniers “off the board” so to speak, I’ll go back to Alex Wennberg. I predicted 55 points for him and I guess I’ll say that narrowly leads the team. What do you think, Darren? Any world in which Alex Wennberg is your leading scorer? And, if not Beniers, who?
DB – I did not expect Wennberg as your rebuttal. I would have expected McCann as your second choice, though I have a weird hunch he will regress a bit from his career year. If Wennberg is the leading scorer in terms of points, it will mean one of his linemates has put up a huge number of goals, because I wouldn’t expect Wennberg to shoot nearly enough to fill the net himself. Interesting pick, though.
Prospect to watch
CI – You know I’m ready to go deep on prospects, Darren. And I was tempted to spend three paragraphs expressing my genuine interest in seeing what high schooler Ben MacDonald does with the West Kelowna Warriors of the BCHL.
But my actual answer to the question of which prospect I’m most interested to see this year is the prospect closest to, but not in, the NHL: Ryker Evans. The 20-year-old blueliner got more ice time this preseason with the Kraken, and, while there were certainly rough moments, I was encouraged by what I saw on balance. He plays with aggression and skill offensively and through the neutral zone. Impressive stuff for a younger player.
The Seattle blue line has a number of question marks looking past this year. Will Vince Dunn deserve a new contract? Will Carson Soucy return? Can Will Borgen or Cale Fleury justify a long-term role? All of this means there is opportunity for Evans. Will he seize it? I’m curious to find out.
DB – I’m shocked you didn’t take Wright. I had mentally prepared myself to write a blurb on Evans, but since you went that direction, and since I already commented on Wright above, I’ll throw a curveball here and say Jagger Firkus. I don’t expect him to make the NHL for a couple seasons, but he will be on a good Moose Jaw Warriors team and should have a ton of confidence returning to the WHL after a positive NHL training camp. Can he top his 80 points in 66 games from last season?
Offseason acquisition that makes the biggest impact
DB –I’m glad I get to go first here. Oliver Bjorkstrand is my pick. I love this guy’s game in all three zones, and although he hasn’t found the scoresheet too many times in preseason, there have been flashes of brilliance that make me think he’s going to be a key contributor.
There may be a bit of an adjustment period, which could make it difficult for Bjorkstrand to replicate the 28 goals he potted in 2021-22 in Columbus. But, he showed good chemistry on a line with former teammate Wennberg and Gourde against the Canucks on Saturday, and he will play big minutes.
CI – Yes, Darren, Bjorkstrand is the pick. I mentioned that Justin Schultz could bring a big boost to the power play, but I think if there is another offseason acquisition that could threaten Bjorkstrand, it has to be Andre Burakovsky. Burakovsky is an elite shooter. But he doesn’t shoot as much as you might expect and has not topped 22 goals in any season. If the team can figure out a way to isolate Burakovsky as a shooter, and the 27-year-old forward adopts the right mentality, I could certainly see a 30-goal campaign in his future. If that were to happen this year, you could fairly argue Burakovsky had the biggest impact.
Team MVP
CI – For all of the changes to this team, I think Yanni Gourde is the guy here. The fans got it right last year, and Yanni should keep the belt (fish?) as team MVP for at least one more year. He should be one of the three or four best skaters on the team, and he is one of the clear emotional and inspirational leaders. The total package is too much for any other player to overcome. If Beniers is a point-per-game player as a rookie and wins the Calder Trophy, get back to me, I guess. What do you think, Darren?
DB – Beniers all the way. I’m sticking to my guns from above and saying he’s going to have a fantastic season. I genuinely think that–even at 19 years old–he’s Seattle’s best player, assuming he can maintain confidence and battle through the rigors of an 82-game NHL season.
The Seattle Kraken officially added a player back into the fold Monday and lost another one to a waiver claim. Daniel Sprong, who was in camp on a professional try-out, accepted a two-way deal worth $750,000 at the NHL level or $325,000 at the AHL level. Meanwhile, netminder Magnus Hellberg—placed on waivers Sunday—was snatched up by the Ottawa Senators, thinning out Seattle’s goalie depth chart.
Daniel Sprong signs
Sprong has had an outstanding training camp. He was the best player in an intrasquad scrimmage on one of the first couple days of practice, and he scored on a wicked one-timer in Seattle’s Sept. 27 preseason game against the Flames.
🚨 SPRONG BOMB! 🚨
Dunn serves it to Sprong on a platter, and the Dutchman blasts away. 1-0 Kraken.
Sprong is a goal scorer with blazing speed and a cannon of a shot. He joined the Kraken at the NHL Trade Deadline last season, in the deal that sent Marcus Johansson to the Washington Capitals, and scored six goals in the 16 games he played for Seattle down the stretch. But even as he was showing offensive prowess, we could tell from how coach Dave Hakstol talked about Sprong that the team thought he needed to show more at the defensive end of the ice.
Sprong, then a restricted free agent, was not tendered a qualifying offer after the 2021-22 season. That made him an unrestricted free agent, and he found himself without a contract as the offseason was winding down.
On Saturday, Sprong said free agency was a “wake-up call” for him, which ended with him coming back to Kraken camp on a PTO and fighting for a contract.
Sprong’s two-way play has always been the knock against him, but after he scored against the Flames this preseason, Hakstol made it clear he liked what he had been seeing from the winger. “I thought he played his ass off tonight,” Hakstol said after that game. “He played hard, and that’s what we want him to keep doing. He’s done that every day, and he’s just got to continue to do that in all three zones.”
How Sprong fits (or doesn’t?)
Now that he is under contract, it will be interesting to see how Seattle proceeds with Sprong. There is no obvious spot for him on the NHL roster, and although he will get a lower salary if he plays for the AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds, he will have to clear waivers to get there.
We think he would clear, because if a general manager out there wanted Sprong, that GM could have signed him at any point during his PTO. But, if Sprong does get claimed, then so be it, since Seattle clearly hadn’t factored him into the plans for the NHL roster coming into camp. That would also likely be a welcome outcome for the player, as he would get another shot at the NHL level.
Regardless of how it shakes out, this is a low-risk deal for the Kraken organization that should minimally provide a top forward at the AHL level and potentially some depth scoring punch at the NHL level.
Magnus Hellberg claimed by Senators
From a goalie gear perspective, we were devastated to learn Hellberg, placed on waivers Sunday with the intention of sending him to Coachella Valley, was claimed by the Ottawa Senators. Hellberg had one of the most unique setups we’ve ever seen, and tragically, we only got to see his Brian’s gear in preseason game action one time.
Magnus Hellberg makes a save for the Seattle Kraken. (Photo/Brian Liesse)
Kraken fans should monitor what happens with Ottawa’s goalies when Talbot returns, because it would seem likely that Hellberg would go back on waivers at that time. If that happens and no other team claims him, Seattle could get Hellberg back and put him right into the AHL without having to put him back on waivers. That is how Seattle claimed and then lost Alex Barré-Boulet and Austin Czarnik last season, and lost but recovered Dennis Cholowski.
So, perhaps Hellberg shouldn’t retire his Kraken gear just yet.
The claiming of Hellberg makes us even more curious to see what will happen if/when Seattle tries to send Joey Daccord down to the AHL. He too will have to clear waivers, and we can’t help wondering if Ottawa would have grabbed him instead of Hellberg, had he been available. Hellberg is the second goalie claimed this preseason after Jonas Johansson went to Arizona, so there does seem to be some residual demand for goalie help as teams look to shore up the position.
Seattle is now down to Philipp Grubauer, Martin Jones, Daccord, and Callum Booth as its options to play for the Kraken and the Firebirds. If Daccord gets claimed, the Kraken will need to find some additional goalie help of their own.
Kole Lind and Andrew Poturalski clear waivers, more cuts coming
Including Hellberg, the Kraken placed 10 players on waivers Sunday. Of that group, we were most concerned about Kole Lind and Andrew Poturalski getting claimed by another NHL team, but both players cleared Monday and were assigned to Coachella Valley.
Lind had a good showing with the Kraken at the end of last season, and Poturalski has been a prolific scorer at the AHL level but has never gotten much of a chance in the NHL.
On Lind, Hakstol said the first couple days of his training camp weren’t his best, but he improved toward the end of his time. The message from Hakstol to Lind is that he needs to work on “solidifying his game and being the very best at what he does and doing that consistently.”
After the cuts, the Kraken have 29 players remaining in camp and will need to trim down to 23 players before the regular season gets underway.
Those left on the roster are in Alberta this week for a team-building trip bookended between Monday’s preseason game against the Calgary Flames and Friday’s preseason finale against the Edmonton Oilers.
