After making 30 picks from the other NHL teams in Wednesday’s expansion draft, the Seattle Kraken starting roster is set.
But does that mean the Kraken is finished? far from there
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There are plenty of maneuvers left for general manager Ron Francis to make in what is shaping up to be a fast and furious offseason throughout the NHL.
Key offseason dates are fast approaching, starting with the NHL Draft on Friday and Saturday (the Kraken have the No. 2 overall pick).
Then, on Wednesday, July 28, teams can start signing free agents. Although Seattle has already signed some unrestricted free agents as part of the expansion draft process, they can also be expected to be very active during the open free agency period.
Because? Because the Kraken was surprisingly conservative in its expansion draft picks. They largely stayed away from the many big-name, high-priced players available to them, including Carey Price, Vladimir Tarasenko, Matt Duchene, and many more.
Instead, Francis focused on building a team of big, physical players, especially on defense, and opted for emerging talent in goal, even if the new names on the roster aren’t the most familiar to budding hockey fans. .
Some of the notable players that Seattle acquired include:
– Mark Giordano, former Norris Trophy winner and longtime captain of the Calgary Flames. He is a strong candidate to become the first captain in Kraken history.
— Adam Larsson, a consistent defender whose departure from Edmonton surprised Oilers fans who expected their team to keep him in free agency.
– Yanni Gourde, whose contributions as a forward were instrumental in helping the Tampa Bay Lightning win back-to-back Stanley Cup championships.
– Jordan Eberle, who comes from the New York Islanders to become the biggest scoring threat on Kraken’s starting roster.
More importantly, by avoiding inflated contracts, Kraken remained with plenty of room under the salary cap to make more moves: nearly $30 million, according to early projections.
The Kraken added 30 players, but NHL teams can only carry 23 during the season. Some will be sent to the minors, but others will be used as trade chips so Seattle can add more assets.
The first of those moves was made on Thursday.
But once the threat of the expansion draft is past, the Kraken trading landscape looks quite different. As Pierre LeBrun wrote in The Athletic: “Seattle went from having all the influence before Wednesday to now having too many players and other teams knowing that.”
One thing the Kraken is currently missing: Scoring Hit. It’s certainly possible that all that salary-cap space could be used to lure a high-priced scorer, either via free agency or a trade.
Reactions were mixed on how well the Kraken fared in the expansion draft.
How well they live up to the high expectations remains to be seen. But what is certain is that there is a lot left to do on the roster in Seattle.
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