Growing up as a kid in Denmark, Kraken center Alexander True hadn’t thought much about the city of Seattle. That changed in 2014 when the Seattle Thunderbirds selected the 6-foot-5 center in the Canadian Hockey League’s import draft when he was 17. Now, seven years later, True’s a Kraken and his name is further etched into the history of Seattle hockey.
Seattle’s NHL club selected True in July’s NHL Expansion Draft from the San Jose Sharks, which puts him in the history books as an original Kraken and part of the franchise’s first roster. But before that, in May of 2017, he scored perhaps the biggest goal in modern Seattle hockey history with an overtime marker against the Regina Pats in Game 6 of the Western Hockey League’s Championship Series to give the Seattle Thunderbirds their first ever league title.
For a guy who grew up thinking he might have a shot at maybe playing pro hockey in Europe, Seattle has become a special place for the 24-year-old as he looks to be a full-time NHL player.
“That’s why life is so funny because you never know what’s gonna happen. It’s crazy,” True says.
One Year Ago. May 14, 2017.@ThomBeuning with the call of Alexander True's overtime game-winning goal in Game 6 vs. Regina.
— Seattle Thunderbirds (@SeattleTbirds) May 14, 2018
When the NHL teams released their protected lists True wasn’t surprised he was left unprotected by the Sharks after he spent the bulk of the previous four seasons in the AHL. He was visiting family when both his agent and San Jose Sharks general manager Doug Wilson called him to tell him the Kraken had selected him.
The emotions were mixed and True says he was happy in San Jose. But the idea of returning to Seattle had him happy as well.
“The first time we knew Seattle was going to get an NHL team one of my first thoughts was, it would be cool to come back and play in Seattle,” True says. “So, it was kind of a little bit of a cool dream to be back there one day.”
Alexander True’s journey to the Seattle Kraken
True’s first year in Seattle was the 2014-15 season with the Thunderbirds, but an injury cost him a big chunk of the year. The next two years he became an integral part of the Thunderbirds lineup and the team made two consecutive trips to the WHL Championship Series.
With a loaded team, True was relegated to playing the third center role – Seattle’s top center was New York Islanders star Mathew Barzal – but he still produced. He scored 39 goals over his last two seasons with the Thunderbirds, but it was in the playoffs that he had the most impact. In 2015-16 he scored six goals and 10 points in the postseason as Seattle fell to the Brandon Wheat Kings in the Championship.
The next year, True was even better. He stepped up into the top center spot while Barzal was out with an illness during the first round, and ended up with 12 goals and 22 points in 20 games.
While with the Thunderbirds, True was coached by 13-year NHL player Steve Konowalchuk.
“He didn’t get enough credit for what he did,” Konowalchuk says of True. “He kind of slid under the radar, but he was every bit as important to what we did. He was unbelievable as a net-front presence on that first power play unit and was so dangerous. The other strength he really had, as a center, he was so good at carrying the puck out of his own end and into the neutral zone… that’s something that is so important at the next level.”
After his first year in pro hockey, the Sharks would sign an NHL contract with True, and he would make his NHL debut in 2020. He’s only played in 19 NHL games to date, both over the past two seasons, but he has been a productive player in the AHL, chipping in offensively, killing penalties, and playing a strong two-way game.
Konowalchuk not only coached him, but as a pro scout with the New York Rangers the past two seasons got a look at True both in the AHL and in the NHL.
“He can definitely play in the NHL,” Konowalchuk says. “There’s no question that he went out and proved he could be a fourth line, penalty killer. The challenge for him to be a mainstay is what is he going to bring to the table? I think the way you do it is to be a responsible defensive center that can kill penalties and he can definitely kill penalties. So, he has to carve out a role by blocking shots, and doing those kind of things.”
What’s next for True and the Kraken?
True says he has heard from former Thunderbirds teammates Ethan Bear of the Carolina Hurricanes, and Keegan Kolesar of the Vegas Golden Knights as well as his Seattle billets to share in the excitement of being back in Seattle.
The attention now turns to the Kraken and what role he can play.
He’s a player who’s been on the cusp of staying in the NHL and will have a shot with the Kraken. Seattle is thin at center and with Yanni Gourde missing the first part of the season, True will have a chance to impress during training camp.
He’s got the size, is a strong defensive center who plays hard, and has some offensive flash. There’s a good chance that he’ll again split time between the AHL in Charlotte and the NHL, but don’t be surprised if he starts the season with the Kraken.
True’s had a taste of the NHL game and the speed and skill that’s needed. He’s well aware of what he needs to do in order to stick.
“It’s a good league and you have to play really well to stand out,” True says. “Especially when you’re playing against the best players in the world, so I need to play my ‘A’ game. Every single night, every shift I get and don’t take any nights off.”
He says that the only Kraken player he knows is Joonas Donskoi from their brief time in San Jose together. He’s taken part in a Zoom meeting to get to know the rest of the team, however, and is excited to meet his new teammates in person.
True will be playing some hockey before he returns to Seattle. He’ll be in Oslo, Norway, August 26-29 playing for Denmark’s national team – something he’s done in the World Junior Championships and this year’s World Championships – as they attempt to qualify for the 2022 Olympics.
He hopes to be in Seattle the first week of September to take his shot and try to break camp with the NHL team.
True has seen the Kraken preseason schedule and knows the team will be playing games in the WHL’s U.S. Division buildings that he’s familiar with. That includes a game on Oct. 2 against the Calgary Flames at the accesso ShoWare Center where he played as a Thunderbird.
He hasn’t been back to Seattle since his time with the Thunderbirds and hasn’t yet laid eyes on the championship banner that he helped win hanging from the rafters.
“I would like it a lot to play in that game,” True says.
Playing in that game would be a perfect way to connect what True has done for the Seattle Thunderbirds in junior to the present and future with the Seattle Kraken.
For this week’s Data Dump, we thought it would be fun to look at what has transpired in the 2021 NHL free agency period by the numbers. For the last year we have been talking about the salary cap crunch impacting most of the teams across the league. The 2020 free agency period illustrated that impact with overall free agency contract commitments down ~20% from 2019 to 2020. We also saw declines in salary cap hit, total contract value, and lengths of contracts as NHL general managers tried to navigate this flat cap challenge. With about two weeks of free agency under our belts, the question is whether or not this conservative approach would continue for 2021. Let’s find out.
Total dollars committed in NHL free agency
The first thing we looked at is the total dollars committed by NHL teams in 2021 free agency. In other words, what is the sum of the total value of all free agent contracts signed? Since we still have 60+ days before the start of the season, we are showing it by day to have a more accurate comparable on where we stand during this free agent period.
As the chart suggests, GM’s are committing more dollars than any time over the last 4 free agent periods. However, there is a new team in the NHL this season and including the new team’s singings to previous free agent periods is not a fair comparable. For that reason, let us exclude Seattle Kraken signings.
When we filter out the Seattle signings, the total committed dollars are still up over the last four years but not nearly as much when we include the Kraken signings.
2021 NHL free agent signing detail
To get more insights on the free agent signings, we break out the number of signings, AAV cap hit, term, and total committed dollars by year. You can also filter by team and position as you see fit.
When looking at the detail, one area that stands out is a 26% increase year over year in total signings, and we still have 60 days of potential additional signings before the season starts. Part of this increase is driven by Seattle, but the Kraken have only signed six unrestricted free agents. 2021 has just happened to bring more free agents to the market compared to previous years.
NHL free agency spend by team
The last step here is to look at the dollar commitments by team to determine who is spending and who is not.
With a relatively blank slate, there is no surprise that Seattle has committed the most money in free agency this year. Alex Wennberg, Jaden Schwartz, and of course Philipp Grubauer account for $76.4 of the $87.7 million in committed contract money. Not included in the Kraken’s numbers above is Jamie Oleksiak ($23M), Adam Larsson ($16M), and Chris Driedger ($10.5M) that were signed to contract extensions during the Expansion Draft, therefore prior to the free agency period.
League assessment
From the data, cap spend and financial commitments to player payroll are close to pre-pandemic levels. This can and should tie the hands of several NHL teams in the next few seasons. Meanwhile Buffalo, Detroit, Ottawa, and Seattle are all well positioned to use their cap space as a weapon over the next few seasons. This will be an interesting strategy to monitor, as we are expected to remain in a flat cap era for at least another three seasons.
Alright, we will admit, the “Weekly One-Timers” feature on good ole’ soundofhockey.com has turned into more of “Occasional One-Timers” than we planned. But there’s been so much to cover over the past few weeks for the Seattle Kraken, that we’ve rightfully let those items take priority.
The good news for you, though, is that today is one of those “occasions” that we’ve put together One-Timers!
All we ask from you in exchange for these great One-Timers is that you sit back, relax, enjoy, subscribe to our podcast, leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts, and maybe buy a t-shirt from soundofhockey.com/store. Is that so much to ask?
The Seattle Kraken signed a bunch of players this week
As you may be aware by now, the Kraken made a few big splashes in the unrestricted free agent market last week, signing Jaden Schwartz, Alex Wennberg, and Philipp Grubauer to contracts. They still had a few restricted free agents in need of contracts, though, and made some progress in closing those out this week, while also adding some seasoned help to the roster.
Marcus Johansson
Marcus Johansson has joined the Kraken on a one-year, $1.5 million deal. The 30-year-old veteran is known for his speed and can occasionally chip in offensively, but what makes him valuable is his versatility and ability to play both center and wing. He definitely is more successful on the wing, but can slot into the middle in a pinch.
Johansson is coming off of a middling season with the Minnesota Wild, where he had 14 points, but he missed significant time with a few different injuries. He was acquired by Minnesota prior to last season in a one-for-one trade with Buffalo that sent Eric Staal to the Sabres.
Over the course of his career, Johansson has 135 goals and 243 assists. He definitely adds some veteran depth to the forward corps. He also has lots of playoff experience and has scored some big playoff goals over the years.
Vince Dunn
The biggest RFA that Seattle was needing to get under contract was Vince Dunn, the 24-year-old defenseman who is expected to play in the top four and potentially quarterback one of the power play units.
Dunn had recently filed for arbitration. That would have guaranteed that some deal got done, but nobody likes being involved in that contentious process if they can avoid it. The team and Dunn did avoid such a hearing by agreeing to a two-year deal at a $4 million cap hit per year. Dunn played four seasons with the St. Louis Blues and won the 2019 Stanley Cup before being selected by Seattle in the Expansion Draft.
This past season, Dunn had 20 points in 43 games and averaged north of 19 minutes per night. He is a young, impact player that will have a huge role with Seattle, so getting him under contract without the long-term agitation caused by arbitration is a big win for all involved. When this two-year contract ends he will again be a restricted free agent, so Seattle will keep his rights.
Alexander True
Former Seattle Thunderbird (and friend of the Sound Of Hockey Pod) Alexander True signed on for one year at a $750,000 cap hit. True, 24, played 19 NHL games for the San Jose Sharks over two seasons and 203 AHL games with the Barracuda over four seasons.
“Alex brings some size and skill to our team at the center position,” said Seattle Kraken general manager Ron Francis via press release. “He’s young and has a successful hockey history in Seattle, scoring some big goals playing in the WHL with the Thunderbirds. We’re looking forward to him continuing that success with our organization.” The Danish center scored the biggest goal in Thunderbirds history to clinch the WHL championship in 2017.
Will Borgen
Defenseman Will Borgen, 24, selected in the Expansion Draft from the Buffalo Sabres, signed for two years at a $900K cap hit. He has 14 NHL games under his belt and 140 AHL games. “Will is a responsible, defensive defenseman whose size and physical style of play can add a spark to a lineup,” said Francis. “He’s still young and developing, and we believe in his upside.”
Borgen was a star at St. Cloud State University for three seasons, and before that played for Moorhead High School in northwestern Minnesota. This is notable because Moorhead is known as the Spuds, perhaps the best high school sports team name on the planet.
Connor Carrick
We knew the RFA deals would eventually get done, but as it did with Johansson, Seattle also surprised a bit by bringing in former New Jersey Devil defenseman Connor Carrick on a one-year $800K contract. Carrick, 27, has a bit more NHL service time than True and Borgen with 241 career games. He split time between New Jersey and Binghamton this past season, with six points at the AHL level and one at the NHL level. Seattle has a deep blue line already, but Carrick adds a bit more NHL experience to the organization. He also has his own podcast!
True, Borgen, and Carrick all have two-way deals, so they will make lower salaries if playing in the AHL.
Kraken Community Iceplex update
Here’s a very important update for you: a tree was planted Thursday outside the Kraken Community Iceplex, as witnessed by Sound Of Hockey’s own Andy Eide.
Photo/Andy Eide
The Kraken also shared a pretty cool picture of the team’s locker room at the Iceplex via Twitter.
giving the new locker room at @KrakenIceplex a quick test run.
It is no secret that the Kraken see their cap space as an advantage over the rest of the league, especially after COVID caused the cap to stay flat for two years. Frank Seravalli—that future-seeing reporter that leaked almost the entire Kraken roster before the Expansion Draft—is now looking into his crystal ball once again and predicting that the cap will rise slightly next offseason to $82.5 million in 2022-23.
This is only a $1 million increase, so it’s not enough to move the needle for teams that are really strapped. Thus, the Kraken will likely maintain their advantage, assuming they don’t put themselves into cap hell with acquisitions.
The Flower shall bloom where he has been unfairly planted
This year’s Vezina Trophy winner and future Hall of Famer, Marc-Andre Fleury, was traded by the Vegas Golden Knights to the Chicago Blackhawks for a bag of pucks last week. The 36-year-old reportedly found out about the trade from his agent, who found out on Twitter. That is a tough look for the Golden Knights organization, after he had done so much to help cement that team in the community and the sports landscape as a whole.
Fleury had reportedly considered simply retiring instead of reporting to Chicago, but he confirmed this week that he will actually play for the Blackhawks this season, which instantly makes them a much better team.
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.
Go behind the ropes with the Sound Of Hockey crew at the Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft!
In this video, you’ll hear from Jamie Oleksiak, Mark Giordano, Haydn Fleury, and Brandon Tanev, and you’ll get a good feel for the atmosphere at Gas Works Park on July 21, 2021.
Less than a month after winning the Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Yanni Gourde was selected by the Seattle Kraken during the Expansion Draft. Now the 29-year-old center from Quebec is busy packing his bags.
On the surface it might be easy to imagine a certain sense of disappointment from a player after being taken off a Tampa Bay club that just won back-to-back championships – and is still loaded with talent – and sent to an expansion team that is putting all its pieces together.
But not for Gourde.
“It’s pretty nice to know that the team wants you that bad when there’s a lot of people that are very talented that were unprotected,” Gourde told media on Tuesday morning. “I was fortunate enough to get taken and get drafted by them and I’m super excited for a great experience. It’s going to be a great challenge.”
On some levels, Gourde feels fortunate to be in the NHL at all.
He was undrafted after three full seasons in the QMJHL with the Victoriaville Tigres – including a monster final year where he scored 37 goals and 124 points in 2011-2012. Like many undrafted guys, he kept the dream of pro hockey alive.
He caught on with the AHL’s Worcester Sharks straight out of junior at the end of the 2012 season but was eventually sent down to the ECHL for an eight-game stint with the now defunct San Francisco Bulls. He would stay in the ECHL at the start of the next season with the Kalamazoo Wings before eventually getting back to the AHL and the Tampa Bay organization in 2014 with the Syracuse Crunch. Gourde played well and graduated to the Lightning full time for the 2017-18 season after 336 minor league games played in two leagues and with four different teams.
Bouncing around the minor leagues as long as he did made the NHL dream feel unreachable. At one point he had shifted his goal to try and carve out a career in Europe.
“There were definitely times that it was harder than others, but I kept battling and I kept pushing,” Gourde said. “Anytime I step on the ice, I want to give it my all and I want to get better, and that’s been my mentality and it’s been my mentality for a long time. It’s probably why I reached the NHL.”
Yanni Gourde’s game has blossomed
It’s Gourde’s hard work that led him to the NHL, and he hasn’t looked back. Twice he’s topped the 20-goal mark for the Lightning and was on pace to do so again this past year had the NHL played a full schedule – he ended with 17 markers.
Those are good scoring numbers but they are made even more impressive when you consider he’s mostly been a third liner on a deep and talented Tampa Bay club. He’s the ultimate two-way center who can score but plays defense, kills penalties, and carries the proverbial sandpaper.
Gourde routinely gets under the opponent’s skin, not because he crosses the line, but because he’s always going full speed.
“I want to be tough to play against, and I think that’s what I’m doing,” he said. “That’s what I want to bring next year as well. And that’s definitely, probably, one of my strengths. And like I said that’s what I’m gonna bring next year that’s what basically got me in the NHL and that’s what probably keeps me around.”
All of his numbers are impressive. He’s been clutch for the Lightning in the playoffs and over the last two championship runs seems to only elevate his game – he scored six times in 23 playoff games this last postseason.
If you like the underlying analytics, you’ll love Gourde. His expected goals (xG) last season was an incredible 54 percent. You won’t find many third-line players with numbers like that, especially one who had more defensive zone starts than he had in the offensive zone. Yes, he was on a good team, but those numbers have been consistent with Gourde for his entire NHL career and if you prefer the eyeball test, he passes that with flying colors as well. Just go re-watch the playoffs.
When will the Kraken get to see Gourde?
As exciting as the Gourde addition to the Kraken is, the team won’t get him right off the bat.
He is recovering from a recent labrum tear that required surgery. It’s an injury that’s been bothering him for the last 18 months, and he said there was a ‘lot of stuff’ going on with his shoulder.
“Right after surgery, we were looking at something around four months,” he said about his recovery time. “Maybe it will be better, I don’t know. It’s tough to say at this point, we’re very early in the rehab and everything. We’ll see how it goes but hopefully shorter than longer.”
A four-month rehab would cost Gourde the first couple months of the upcoming season, but when he’s ready, Gourde has the talent that could eventually slot into becoming the club’s top center. Where he plays in the lineup is not a concern to him, however.
“As soon as I’m ready, I’ll be ready, I’ll be skating with the boys,” he said. “I’ll be battling. My priorities are to help this team win and wherever I fit in in the lineup, that’s where I’m going to and I’m going to try to work as hard as I can do to help my team win.”
When he does return, the Kraken will get a boost from a career third-line player who will finally get his chance to play in the top six – something he would have already done playing for nearly every NHL team other than Tampa Bay.
He has the experience, the skill, and the attitude that will hopefully rub off on the rest of the roster. Gourde is the kind of player that can, and has, affected a team’s identity.
“I think we’re going to be a fairly hard-working group,” he said. “There’s a lot of potential there and that’s the first step to success. If you work hard, you’re definitely putting yourself in a good position, and we might be one of those teams that play playoff hockey during the season…we’ll see what happens but when I look at this team, I see how many work ethic guys we’ve got.
“Every single one of those guys work hard and they compete, and I think that’s the key and that’s what we’re building on. We know that and I think we’re super excited about that.”
On this week’s Sound Of Hockey Podcast, the guys have a lot to get through from around the NHL and specifically within the Seattle Kraken organization, where three big-time free agents joined the ranks last week.
So, John, Andy, and Darren break that down first and consider what those additions mean for the inaugural roster. They also share their thoughts on what the Kraken have put together in general, before moving on to the rest of the league.
In talking about the rest of the NHL, with so many players on the move over the past couple weeks, the hosts take an approach of discussing only those teams and players who have created the most intrigue with their respective moves. It’s like a pre-filtered version of “Interesting or Carry On.”
Segments on this episode include Weekly One-Timers and Tweets of the Week.
On this week’s Sound Of Hockey Podcast, the guys have a lot to get through from around the NHL and specifically within the Seattle Kraken organization, where three big-time free agents joined the ranks last week.
So, John, Andy, and Darren break that down first and consider what those additions mean for the inaugural roster. They also share their thoughts on what the Kraken have put together in general, before moving on to the rest of the league.
In talking about the rest of the NHL, with so many players on the move over the past couple weeks, the hosts take an approach of discussing only those teams and players who have created the most intrigue with their respective moves. It’s like a pre-filtered version of “Interesting or Carry On.”
Segments on this episode include Weekly One-Timers and Tweets of the Week.
Francis put together an experienced blue line with a mix of skill sets, including some big, physical guys. Seattle won’t be an easy out during the regular season which should help Philipp Grubauer and Chris Driedger in net.
Here is a look at who is on the roster, what you need to know about them, and where they project in the Kraken lineup.
Mark Giordano
37 years old
Left-shot defenseman
949 career games
.54 points per game
Perhaps the biggest name that the Kraken picked up in the Expansion Draft, it’s going to take some getting used to seeing Giordano in blue. All 949 games he’s played came with the Calgary Flames, and he will be a leader in Seattle as he was with the Flames. He’s got a trophy case that include a Norris (2019) and a Messier (2020). He brings leadership and offense to the Kraken blue line.
That offense is still there despite his advanced age. He averaged just under half a point per game last season with positive possession numbers and an expected goals (xG) of 52.6 percent. He was a mainstay on the Flames power play and chipped in for eight points.
Kraken projection: If Seattle chooses a captain in its first season, Giordarno will be in that mix. Look for him to be in the team’s top defensive pairing and manning the point on the power play.
Jamie Oleksiak
28 years old
Left-shot defenseman
369 career games
.20 points per game
You don’t have to consider his statistics to figure out what Oleksiak’s game is about. Just look at him. He’s big. He’s listed at 6-foot-7 and 255 pounds. While he’s not going to bring the Climate Pledge Arena crowd to their feet with end-to-end rushes, he might do so with a crushing hit along the boards. Oleksiak is a good, physical, stay-at-home type of defenseman and will be an imposing force.
He’s not a big scorer but did come up with some key goals during the Dallas Stars’ run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2020 when he scored five times. His underlying numbers are good and when he was on the ice at five-on-five play last year, the Stars generated more high-danger chances than they allowed.
“I’m here to win,” Oleksiak said at the Expansion Draft. “I like to have fun and fun for me is winning. I think we got guys here, the guys I’ve met so far, we’re all kind of in the same boat. We’re gonna do what we can to win and that’s the end goal, right?”
Kraken projection: Top-four pairing.
Adam Larsson
28 years old
Right-shot defenseman
603 career games
.22 points per game
Another guy who isn’t going to provide a lot of offense from the back end, Larsson has been a solid defenseman throughout his NHL career. Once traded for Taylor Hall, he survived six seasons with the defensively inept Oilers. His possession numbers suffered a bit for that, but when he was with the New Jersey Devils the previous five seasons his analytics were a notch better.
Can he regain that form in Seattle? On paper the Kraken appear to have a more stout defense than Larsson was a part of in Edmonton. That should help help him be an effective defender.
Kraken projection: Larsson is a right-handed shot and will have a chance of playing with Giordano on the top defensive pairing.
Carson Soucy
27 years old
Left-shot defenseman
108 career games
.29 points per game
The general theme surrounding the inaugural Kraken lineup is that it’s going to be a tough team to play against. Soucy adds to that feeling. He’s just scratching the surface of his NHL career, having just played two full seasons with the Minnesota Wild. Soucy is also scratching doorways and low ceilings as he’s listed at 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds. Like Oleksiak, he’s a physical player who also has an imposing presence on defense.
Soucy is an eyeball player. You notice him when watching him live, and he makes good plays, but his possession numbers so far in his career have been on the negative side of the ledger. Still, the upside is there and the hope is that he’s getting better with more experience.
Kraken projection: Most likely a third-pairing defenseman but could play his way into the top four.
Vince Dunn
24 years old
Left-shot defenseman
276 career games
.38 points per game
Dunn is young but already has 276 NHL games under his belt, which is impressive. He’s flashed offensive skill in the past – including a 12-goal, 35-point campaign during the Blues Stanley Cup season in 2018-2019 – and the Kraken are hoping he can do so consistently. As a restricted free agent, he filed for arbitration so there is still a bit of contract negotiation to get through, but he’ll be in Seattle this year, barring a trade.
Which version of Dunn will Seattle see? Will it be the Dunn who put up great xG percentages of 53, 59, and 53 over his first three seasons or the one who slipped to 45 this past year? The Blues as a team were not as strong last year so perhaps that down year was an anomaly.
Kraken projection: The talent is there for Dunn to be a top-four and power-play defenseman for Seattle.
Haydn Fleury
25 years old
Left-shot defenseman
170 career games
.15 points per game
A former first-round pick of Ron Francis and the Carolina Hurricanes in 2014, Fleury has shown flashes but has yet to play consistently in the NHL. He was a scoring defenseman in junior and during his rookie pro year in the AHL with Charlotte. There is skill there, but his inability to put it all together led to him being traded to the Anaheim Ducks at this past trade deadline. Francis must still see potential and drafted him again during the expansion process.
Fleury has been a good possession player throughout his short NHL career and posted positive numbers both in Carolina and Anaheim last season. Projected as a scoring defenseman when he was originally drafted, perhaps his role is ultimately as more of a two-way guy.
Kraken projection: Fleury will play and will be in the mix for the top four.
Jeremy Lauzon
24 years old
Left-shot defenseman
76 career games
.14 points per game
Lauzon is a young defenseman who played his first full season in the NHL last year with Boston. He hit the ice for 19 minutes a game and showed a lot of potential as a stay-at-home, physical defenseman. He’s never been a scorer at any level so you’re looking at a guy to retrieve pucks and make a good first pass up ice.
Kraken projection: Most likely a bottom-pairing guy at this point in his career. Part of the impressive depth Seattle has on defense.
Dennis Cholowski
23 years old
Left-shot defenseman
104 career games
.26 points per game
A former first-round pick with Detroit, Cholowski showed promise during his rookie season in 2018-19 with seven goals and 16 points. He hasn’t come close to that since and has been splitting his time between the Red Wings and the AHL.
There’s potential, which is a dangerous word, but if Cholowski can find the scoring touch he had prior to the NHL he could find a place in Seattle.
Kraken projection: Most likely AHL bound but could surprise with a strong training camp and preseason.
On the outside looking in
William Borgen is a 24-year-old right-handed defenseman who will most likely start in the AHL with Charlotte. He played 10 games with Buffalo last season and has just 14 NHL games so far in his career.
Cale Fleury is another right-hander who will have to impress in camp to crack the roster. He played in 41 games for Montreal in the 2019-20 season but spent last year in the AHL with the Laval Rocket where he recorded six assists in 22 games.
We are roughly two weeks removed from the Seattle Expansion Draft, and the roster has already shifted quite a bit since the players were announced at Gas Works Park on July 21. Five of the players selected are no longer with the team and three high-profile free agents have been added to the squad. One thing that has been interesting over the last two weeks is the stark contrast between how the Vegas Expansion Draft played out and how the Seattle Expansion Draft went. With similar rules but very different circumstances, the two organizations ultimately took very different routes to constructing their inaugural rosters.
Expansion Draft roster moves
By the rules, Seattle and Vegas were each required to select 30 players from the teams participating in the Expansion Draft. At a high level, there were four different scenarios that could have played out for these player assets.
Left Via UFA – This is a scenario where the drafted player became an unrestricted free agent as soon as the UFA period opened after the Expansion Draft. Selecting players with expiring contracts implied that Vegas or Seattle had no intention of signing these impending free agents and did not see any other notable assets on the NHL team’s roster from which they came.
The Flip-Trade – In this scenario, the Golden Knights or Kraken drafted a player with the sole purpose to trade him to another team within days of the Expansion Draft.
Side Deal – This was more of a conventional trade that would involve Vegas or Seattle being offered up draft picks, prospects, or other players to assure they select or avoid a certain individual that was exposed.
Draft and Extend – Several players that were exposed by their teams were on the last year of their respective contracts and therefore were unsigned for the subsequent season. In the “draft and extend” scenario, Vegas/Seattle could draft the player in the Expansion Draft and sign them to a contract extension.
Vegas Expansion Draft moves
Here is a look at the Vegas Expansion Draft moves
The theme of the Vegas Expansion Draft was side deals. They acquired four additional players this way, plus the negotiation rights of another player that signed a contract nine months later with the team.
Seattle Expansion Draft moves
The Kraken had zero side deals in the Expansion Draft, but they were able to draft and extend three pending unrestricted free agents during the 48-hour negotiating period prior to the Expansion Draft. The signings of Jamie Oleksiak, Chris Driedger, and Adam Larsson to contracts should be testimonials to how players now view playing for an expansion team.
Shea Theodore, Reilly Smith, and Alex Tuch are all considered the steals of the Vegas Expansion Draft that embarrassed several NHL general managers. This is likely why there were no side deals in the Seattle Expansion Draft as general mangers feared looking bad this time around.
Free Agency – Vegas signings
Following the Vegas Expansion Draft, the general consensus was that the Golden Knights would be the worst team in the NHL in their inaugural season. That outlook probably created some reluctance for some of the higher sought-after free agents to sign with the Golden Knights. It shows in their signings when free agency opened that year.
If you do not recognize many of those names, it is probably because very few of them would actually go on to play in the NHL after signing with the Golden Knights.
Seattle free agent signings
Conversely, the success of the Golden Knights in their first year of existence probably created some sense of optimism around playing for an expansion draft team. It certainly helped in signing Oleksiak, Driedger, and Larsson during the Expansion Draft, but also came into play during free agency.
The one area where Vegas did particularly well was its ability to accumulate draft picks around the Expansion Draft. George McPhee, general manager of the Golden Knights in 2017, accumulated an additional 14 draft picks. These picks were accumulated in side deals and trades.
As mentioned above, Seattle did not have any side deals in the Expansion Draft, which really hampered their ability to accumulate draft picks. To date, Seattle has made three post-Expansion-Draft trades that have added three NHL Entry Draft picks to their quiver.
The unwillingness of NHL general managers to participate in side deals during the Seattle Expansion Draft has certainly put a damper on the Kraken’s ability to stockpile draft picks.
The Kraken are not done yet
We are quickly approaching the quiet part of the NHL calendar when there will be little news and even fewer trades. It might stay quiet on the Seattle front for a bit, but the Kraken are not done making roster moves. They still have some salary cap space at their disposal and a strong defensive core that might provide some value on the trade market. Anticipate things to heat up come September as training camps start to open across the NHL.
The last week and a half have been bonkers for the Kraken and their fledgling fanbase. Thirty players were selected in the Expansion Draft, three of those were traded away, seven prospects were taken in the NHL Entry Draft, and three significant unrestricted free agents were signed. There will come a time in the near future when we will feel the need to analyze and dissect every transaction that involves a Kraken player. But with things happening in such rapid succession, we really haven’t had a chance to take a step back and consider what the Seattle Kraken actually have in their initial roster.
So, let’s give it a gander, shall we?
Projected depth chart
Forwards
Jaden Schwartz – Alex Wennberg – Jordan Eberle
Jared McCann – Yanni Gourde – Calle Jarnkrok
Brandon Tanev – Colin Blackwell – Joonas Donskoi
Morgan Geekie – Mason Appleton – Nathan Bastian
Defense
Mark Giordano – Adam Larsson
Vince Dunn – Jamie Oleksiak
Carson Soucy – Haydn Fleury / Jeremy Lauzon
Goalies
Philipp Grubauer
Chris Driedger
Joey Daccord
—
Vying for spots
Forwards
Alexander True / Luke Henman / Carsen Twarynski / Kole Lind
Defense
Cale Fleury / Will Borgen / Dennis Cholowski
—
Now, this is obviously just our guess at how things will shake out. Yanni Gourde had surgery and is expected to miss a month or two, so already the Kraken may have a spot for a guy like Alexander True out of the gates, though we think more forwards will be added before the season starts.
Impressive at defense and goalie, better than people realize at forward
The depth on defense is impressive. We see Haydn Fleury and Jeremy Lauzon as interchangeable options on the third pair, but both of those guys are legit NHL players who played as many as 25 minutes on a given night this past season. We also list Cale Fleury as being on the outs, but he played 41 games for Montreal as a 22-year-old, so he will get a look in training camp. He’s also a right-shot defenseman, which is valuable, as he is one of just three on the Seattle Kraken roster (Adam Larsson and Will Borgen are the other two).
With Philipp Grubauer taking over the starting spot in the goalcrease and Vitek Vanecek sent back to Washington, the Grubauer/Chris Driedger tandem looks to be one of the better batteries in the NHL. Combined, the duo had a regular-season save percentage of .924 in 2020-21, which legitimately puts Seattle at the top of the league if they both put up comparable numbers. So, with all that, it’s pretty easy to imagine the Kraken being a difficult team against which to score.
“I think our D corps is really good,” Grubauer said on Friday during his media availability. “Forwards too. With [Jaden Schwartz], some experience in the forward section there, so it’s going to be really interesting what system coach puts in place, and we’ve got to find our identity as a team too. The team looks great on paper, but obviously you’ve got to play and create some chemistry, and I think it’s a young team so really looking forward.”
Even with the free agent signings of Schwartz and Alex Wennberg, though, the prevailing theory seems to be that the forward corps is thin and won’t produce enough goals. There is a good group of secondary- and tertiary-type scorers in guys like Gourde, Jared McCann, Calle Jarnkrok, and Joonas Donskoi. That should bring a balanced attack throughout the top three lines, regardless of how head coach Dave Hakstol draws it up. But without high-octane scoring leaders, can Seattle get enough offensive production in a score-by-committee approach?
I’m no data guy, but let’s look at this from a slightly more analytical angle, rather than just straight-up eyeball testing it. The 12 forwards and six defensemen that we have slotted into the above depth chart (let’s assume the last spot on the blue line goes to Haydn Fleury just because he has more NHL experience than Lauzon) combined for 168 total goals in the shortened 2020-21 season. That sounds weak, right?
Well, actually, if the Seattle Kraken had played this past season and those 18 players had made up the entirety of their roster and produced that exact same amount of goals, they would have landed even with the Boston Bruins in a tie for 14th place in the NHL.
That’s an oversimplification because there are myriad factors that we are not taking into account that would skew things in both directions. For example, Wennberg was playing on a very good line with Jonathan Huberdeau and Patric Hornqvist, so perhaps his numbers were skewed up. Schwartz missed 16 games and only managed eight goals after scoring 22 the year before, so we would imagine that his production was skewed down.
The point is that although the first glance may tell you there isn’t enough firepower in the forward group, it does feature a pretty good contingent of guys who consistently score 20+ goals in the NHL. If you put enough of those guys in one lineup, they collectively produce at a pretty good clip.
The below tweet also looks quite nice.
Here is how the WAR roster builder projects the 2022 NHL standings after two days of free agency. pic.twitter.com/2EdHra8aRN
How will intangibles factor into the Seattle Kraken roster?
We also can’t forget about the intangibles. It’s no secret that Ron Francis and company have been focused on finding “character” guys and players who never quit on a play, and they have been successful in this endeavor. How that factors into the team’s success remains to be seen, but things like that do have an impact.
“I think everybody kind of has a little bit of the same makeup,” said Kraken forward Colin Blackwell during a Zoom call with press on Friday. “A lot of guys have talked about just what a good group of character guys it is, and I can’t tell you how far that goes in the game that we play, bringing in a bunch of good guys.”
“The roster is shaping up really well,” Blackwell added. “We’ve got a lot of guys that are kind of like myself, guys that can play up and down the lineup. We’ve got a good mix of some young, really good players, some people that are really hungry and maybe have only played one or two years under their belt but have a lot of potential and can really turn into some great players. You have a great mix there, and it starts with goaltending and the goaltending that we got is really good… So I think the roster is looking awesome. I’m extremely excited about it.”
Will the Kraken be the top-scoring team in the league? Absolutely not. But they’re going to score enough to get by, their defense appears very solid, their goaltending looks outstanding, and their compete level should be quite high. Let’s not forget, there’s still plenty of cap space to add either before or during the season, so Seattle is in a pretty good spot here.
Header photo by Brian Liesse.
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.
