I wasn't a fan of what the Kraken did during the expansion draft in building their original roster, but they have made plenty of good moves since then. They have had good entry drafts, have made some decent free agency signings and made some good trades. They are heading in the right direction.

GM and Coach

Ron Francis has been the GM in Seattle since July of 2019 and has been in charge of the expansion draft and everything else since then. He was the GM in Carolina from April of 2014 to March of 2018, when he moved to the role of President for a few months before being fired. Francis was the GM in Carolina when coach Bill Peters was found to have abused player Michael Jordan from behind the bench and Francis didn't fire him.

David Hakstoll was named head coach in Seattle before the 2021-22 season after being the head coach in Philadelphia for three and a half years. His overall record in the NHL is 161-150-48. The Kraken had a record of 27-49-6 last year during his first season there.

Salary Cap

The Kraken has just over $2.1 million in salary cap space for the 2022-23 season.

They have signed all of their restricted free agents, except for Cale Fleury (23) who played nine games in the NHL with Seattle last season.

Draft Picks

Seattle was ecstatic during the 2022 draft as the consensus first overall pick dropped to them at 4th overall.

Seattle picks were:

1st round – 4th overall – Shane Wright (18) (C) 63-32-62-94 with Kingston – OHL

2nd round – 35th overall – Jagger Firkus (18) (RW) 66-36-44-80 with Moose Jaw – WHL

2nd round – 49th overall – Jani Nyman (17) (LW/RW) 34-18-17-35 with KOOVEE – Mestis (Finland)

2nd round – 58th overall – Niklas Kokko (18) (G) – 29-2.06-91.4 with Karpat – Finnish U20

2nd round – 61st overall – David Goyette (18) (C) 66-33-40-73 with Sudbury – OHL

3rd round – 68th overall – Ty Nelson (18) (RD) 66-9-42-51 with North Bay – OHL

3rd round – 91st overall – Ben MacDonald (18) (C) 22-14-15-29 with Noble Greenough School – USHS-Prep

4th round – 100th overall – Tyson Jugnauth (18) (LD) 52-9-41-50 with West Kelowna – BCHL

4th round – 123rd overall – Tucker Robertson (19) (C) 68-41-40-81 with Peterborough – OHL

6th round – 164th overall – Barrett Hall (18) (C, LW, RW) 25-25-30-55 with Gentry Academy – USHS-Minnesota

7th round – 196th overall – Kyle Jackson (19) (C) 45-30-32-62 with North Bay – OHL

In 2023, Seattle has three 2nd round picks, and two picks in the 4th and 6th rounds in addition to all of their picks in rounds one, three, five and seven for a total of 11.

Free Agents

Seattle has added Martin Jones (32), Justin Schultz (32), Andre Burakovsky (27), John Hayden (27) and Michal Kempny (31).

Chris Driedger (28) had ACL surgery and won't be back playing until at least January of 2023, hence the signing of Jones. In a cap world, it seems strange that the team would give Jones $2 million next season when they have Joey Daccord (25) and Magnus Hellberg (31) as backup options for $750k.

Francis signed Schultz at $3 million AAV for two years which is probably fair value if Schultz can play more than 60 games each year and provide 25-30 points each season.

Burakovsky was the big signing for Seattle as he was given a five-year deal at $5.5 million AAV.

Hayden and Kempny were both depth signings and given one year deals at the league minimum of $750k.

The team was able to re-sign restricted free agents, Morgan Geekie (24), Kole Lind (23), Carsen Twarynski (24), Alex True (25) and Karson Kuhlmann (26).

Roster

Currently, as per my player ratings and projected lineup, the Kraken should be in the running for a lottery draft pick in 2023 as they come in tied for 25th overall. There are some variables, with Matty Beniers, Shane Wright and the play of Grubauer important pieces of how this team does this year.

Forwards

If healthy the Kraken has a decent top-nine group, but with the players involved injuries will happen.

Jared McCann (26) is perhaps their top winger on the left side now after 27 goals and 23 assists in 70 games last year. It's hard to believe he will be entering his eighth year in the NHL next season. He's become much more of a shooter in Seattle (2.7 S/G) and should benefit with a full season of Matty Beniers (19) in the lineup. He should be able to reach 25 goals again.

Oliver Bjorkstrand (27) was a great get for Ron Francis in giving up only a 3rd and 4th round pick in 2023. He is signed for four more years at $5.4 million AAV. Over the past three seasons in Columbus he has maintained between 0.71 and 0.79 pts/game and should be able to maintain that in Seattle. Much like McCann, he is a shooter (2.7 to 3.3/g) so expect those two to lead this team in goals next year. Bjorkstrand should be capable of 25-30 goals and 55-60 points. He can play either right or left wing.

Jordan Eberle (32) had 21 goals and 23 assists in 79 games last year. Over his 12 NHL seasons he's had four seasons over 59 points and/or 25 goals. I think his production is about where it was last year and perhaps 50 points is now the outlier for his ceiling. He's still a solid player, but there are younger players coming up that will replace him in Seattle over the next two years.

Yanni Gourde (30) had 21 goals and 27 assists in 74 games last year. He is probably the Kraken's best defensive center, but he can chip in with 17-22 goals and 45-50 points each year. He is signed for three more years at $5.17 million AAV. He played 336 games in the AHL or ECHL after going undrafted and unsigned even after putting up 37 goals and 87 assists in 68 games in the QMJHL as a 20-year old. I love to see players like Gourde prove people wrong.

Burakovsky (27) was signed as an unrestricted free agent to a five-year contract at $5.5 million AAV. He had 22 goals and 39 assists in 80 games last year with Colorado, but we shouldn't expect the same production from him in Seattle. He doesn't shoot the puck that often (1.8 to 1.9 per game over the past three years) but has a high career shooting percentage of 14.7 over 519 career games. I think we will see him around 15-20 goals and 25-30 assists in Seattle next year. He could disappoint people that see last year's numbers.

Alex Wennberg (27) is a defensively responsible center, who had 11 goals and 26 assists in 80 games last year for Seattle. If he can have two more seasons like that, the Kraken might get their money's worth for the three year deal at $4.5 million AAV that expires at the end of the 2023-24 season. In eight NHL seasons he has scored more than 10 goals three times, which is not a surprise as he shoots an average of 1.2 S/G and has a career shooting percentage of 10. He could produce 8-12 goals and 25-30 assists next year.

The last player locked into the top nine is Brandon Tanev (30) who I thought was one of the better Kraken players in the team's first 30 games. Unfortunately, he was injured in game 30 and was out the rest of the season after he put up nine goals and six assists and 98 hits. He has only managed 62 games over the past two years but has produced 16 goals and 15 assists with 237 hits. If he can play 60-70 games next season, the Kraken will be that much better with his presence in the lineup. I would pencil him in for 55-60 points and 10-15 goals and 10-15 assists with 150-175 hits.

The rest of the forwards will be battled out between Morgan Geekie (24), Ryan Donato (26), Joonas Donskoi (30), Shane Wright (18), John Hayden (27), Karlson Kuhlman (26), Kole Lind (23) and perhaps Jesper Froden (27).

The big questions for Geekie are does he have more offense to offer than his seven goals and 15 assists in 73 games last year or is his ceiling that of a fourth-line center who doesn't bring a very physical game for his size (6-3, 192)? The second question will be is Shane Wright a better option already as the fourth line center? I think Geekie is in a tough spot, as he's unlikely to supplant those above him at center by outplaying them. He'll need to take advantage of any opportunity and run with it but more than likely his ceiling is 10-12 goals and 15-20 assists.

Donato has seen his spot in the lineup more than likely moved down to the fourth line and spot duty for injuries and slumping players. It's too bad as he had 16 goals and 15 assists in 74 games last year in Seattle, which were all career highs. He might be on to his fifth team in his sixth NHL season next year. He is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.

Donskoi was probably the most disappointing Kraken last season. It took him till his 44th game as a Kraken to register his first goal of the season. He finished with two goals and 20 assists in 75 games. I think they were hoping they were getting the player that had between 14 and 17 goals the four years prior. Like Donato, he is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season and there isn't much room for him on the depth chart. I think he'll be moved sooner than later. He could see 10-15 goals and 15-20 assists on another team.

Hayden is a curious free agent signing as he has played 239 NHL games over six seasons and has 15 goals and 20 assists, but has 533 hits. He's a big body at 6-3, 223 lbs and will probably be a healthy scratch most nights but could see 35-45 games next year. He's not adding offense, but purely energy to the lineup. His signing signals a need that the coaches and management identified as lacking in this lineup.

Kuhlman is another energy guy, but of a different build at 5-10, 190 lbs, but saw 10 games last year with the Kraken and had two goals and two assists. Seattle must have liked what they saw as they re-signed him to a one-way deal this season, so he must clear waivers to be sent down. He's another guy that could stick and be a healthy scratch a number of times.

Lind is at a crossroads as he will expect to make the team after 23 games last year with Seattle where he had two goals and six assists. Unfortunately, there are some players in front of him that will make that goal very tough with this roster. If he can handle the mental aspects of playing another full season in the AHL, it might benefit him if he did well, but that is a hard pill to swallow for any player. He's only played 84 games at the pro level over the past two seasons.

Jesper Froden intrigued me last year when he came over from the SHL to play for Boston. Things didn't work out that well as he only played seven games with the Bruins and ended up with 49 games in the AHL where he put up 16 goals and 18 assists. The intriguing part was his 22 goals and 18 assists in 52 games in the SHL. There is skill there and by signing with Seattle, he has another opportunity this year as he must feel he has more to offer. He is a dark-horse.

It will depend how well Shane Wright does at training camp and during the pre-season, but I think it is a sure thing that the Kraken give him the nine game preview before sending him back to junior, if they choose to do that. The AHL is not an option.

Defence

The Kraken are a bottom-ten team on defence with no blue chip player or prospect in their mix.

The defender with the most potential is Vince Dunn (25) who had a pretty good overall season last year with seven goals and 28 assists in 73 games, while averaging 20:41 per night. He averaged over 20 minutes for the first time in his career and his defence didn't seem to suffer. The only warning sign is that he hasn't been given the keys to the power play and until then it will be difficult for him to crack 45 points. He will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season and currently makes $4 million AAV.

Adam Larsson (29) will be entering his 12th NHL season next year and has three years remaining on his contract at $4 million AAV. Last season he had eight goals and 17 assists, with 183 hits and 140 blocked shots while averaging 22:17 per night. He probably hit his ceiling last year.

Jamie Oleksiak (29) has four years remaining under contract at $4.6 million AAV. He had career highs in games (72), points (17), hits (182) and SOG (95). If he has four more years like last season, there won't be as much of an issue with this contract, but it's not likely.

Justin Schultz (29) was signed as an unrestricted free agent for two years at $3 million AAV. He has an opportunity to get some power play time but is a perennial band-aid boy so don't count on anything more than 55-60 games. If everything came up roses and he hit it out of the park he could see 35-40 points in Seattle, but at a cost for Dunn.

Carson Soucy (28) will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of next season after putting up 10 goals, 11 assists, 118 hits and 73 blocked shots in 64 games last year while averaging a career-high 17:40 per night. He is a prime example of zone starts as last year his OZ starts were 49 percent compared to the year before where they were 34.7. His CF percentage last year was 50.4 compared to 42.4 in Minnesota. I think he will bring back some good value at the trade deadline.

Other defenders in the mix for the sixth and seventh roles are William Borgen (25), Michal Kempny (31), Cale Fleury (23), and Brogan Rafferty (27).

I thought Borgen separated himself from the others in this group with his play in 36 games last year with the Kraken. He had two goals and six assists, with 89 hits and 33 blocked shots while averaging 15:17 per night. The test for him will come when he has to play against better players and not be sheltered as much.

Michal Kempny  is a reclamation project who has only played 15 games over the past two seasons at the NHL level. He is not a bad gamble at the league minimum of $750k for one season. Four years ago he did have six goals, 19 assists, 84 hits, 135 blocked shots in 71 games with Washington while averaging 19:11. The Kraken will take 50-60 games at the level of an average NHL defender.

Cale Fleury had a decent year in the AHL last year where he played 58 games and had seven goals and 26 assists. It earned him a nine-game look at the end of the season with Seattle. He will need to have a great camp and preseason to have a chance to make this team next year.

Rafferty is an example of a player who gets so close to fulfilling his dream of getting to the NHL but hasn't quite done it. After being signed to his first pro contract after playing four years of US college hockey at Quinnipiac, Rafferty had an excellent first pro year in the AHL where he put up seven goals and 38 assists in 57 games. There was speculation in Vancouver that he would make the team the next season, but Covid hit and he was placed on the Taxi Squad for all of 2020-21, where he played one NHL game with the Canucks (he did get an assist) and no other games for that whole season. Anaheim signed him last year to a one-way contract, but sent him to the AHL after the pre-season, where he cleared waivers. It doesn't look like he recovered well as he had four goals and 20 assists in 65 games and didn't get a shot with the Ducks. This year he has signed a two-way deal with Seattle, and it would be great to see him get some games, but the odds are against him.

Goalie

The Kraken didn't give Philipp Grubauer (30) a six-year deal at $5.9 million AAV to put up numbers like he did last season. Honestly, it wasn't all on him as the Kraken aren't one of the better defensive teams in the league, but he was still very below average.

Last year saw him with a record of 18-31-7, a GAA of 3.16, 88.9 save percentage and a GSAA of minus 26.64 (NHL worst). He did manage a little better second half over his first, but not by much. He had never played more than 40 games before in a season and played 55 last year. Not every goalie has the mentality to be  a 1A in this league and this year might prove whether Grubauer is or not.

Chris Driedger had ACL knee surgery and is due back in mid-January 2023. Last season was a mixed one for him as he struggled at times, had Covid and faced some injuries. For a backup, his contract is not cheap at $3.5 million AAV for the next two years.

Ron Francis was forced to bring in another NHL goalie as backup and chose Martin Jones (32), signing him for one season at $2 million AAV. If the Kraken can get 2017-18 Jones, then they will be getting a goalie who is slightly above average. If they get Jones from the past four seasons, they are getting Jones who has somehow played 172 NHL games with a cumulative GSAA of minus 56.61 over that period.

Possible good news for Kraken goalies, is the hiring of Steve Briere as the new Goaltending Coach for next season. Briere comes over after seven years with the Maple Leafs.

Overall

I think there will be a good chance that Seattle has a lottery pick next season for the 2023 draft. They are a team going in the right direction though and with Beniers and now Wright in the fold, they just need some blue-chip defenders to add to the mix. They might have made a mistake during the expansion draft, when they seemed to focus on size rather than ability for most of their defence that they picked.

Thanks for reading, and let me know if you want me to focus on any players or topics by messaging me below or following me on Twitter @gampbler15.