2025-26 Puck Drop Preview: Seattle Kraken

Last Word on Hockey’s Puck Drop Previews are back for the 2025-26 season! As the regular season approaches, Last Word will preview each team’s current outlook and stories to watch for the upcoming year. We’ll also do our best to project how things will go for each team throughout the campaign. Today, we’re previewing the 2025-26 Seattle Kraken.

2025-26 Seattle Kraken

Seattle Kraken 2024-25 Season Recap

The Kraken had hoped to return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season after an active summer in 2024. However, the Kraken fell short of their goal, finishing the season with a 35-41-6 record. Their disappointing season resulted in the firing of head coach Dan Bylsma, who only spent one season behind the Kraken bench.

Jaden Schwartz led the team with 26 goals, his best since joining the Kraken. Jared McCann led the team with 61 points. Between the pipes, Joey Daccord led in wins with 27 as well as save percentage (9.06) and goals against average (2.75).

2025 Off-Season

The Kraken’s first order of business was finding a new coach. In late May, Lane Lambert was named as the team’s head coach.

The Kraken made a few splashes in free agency. Their biggest acquisition was signing defenceman Ryan Lindgren to a four-year contract. Two-time Stanley Cup Champion Matt Murray signed with the team to bolster the goaltending depth.

In the draft, the Kraken selected Jake O’Brien with the eighth-overall pick.

Projected Lineup

Forwards

Jaden Schwartz – Matty Beniers – Kaapo Kakko

Jared McCann – Chandler Stephenson – Jordan Eberle

Mason Marchment – Shane Wright – Eeli Tolvanen

Tye Kartye – Frederick Gaudreau – Jani Nyman

Top Six

We already talked about Schwartz’s 26 goals from last season. Beniers also reached the 20-goal mark last season, while Kakko scored 14 goals in 79 games, splitting the season between the Kraken and the New York Rangers. While this top line has potential, there are risks. Kakko has never scored more than 18 goals in a season, something he has only done once. Schwartz can be a productive offensive player, but has dealt with injuries throughout his career that keep him out of the lineup. The 81 games he played in last season were his most since the 2018-19 season. As a result, Beniers is the most consistent member of this top line. Entering his fifth season, Beniers has two 20-goal seasons and consistently records between 35 and 45 points.

The second line has question marks as well. Eberle only played in 42 games, scoring nine goals. If he can stay in the lineup, can he continue to score around 20 goals? Stephen’s goal production has dipped in the last few seasons, scoring just 13 goals. McCann, on the other hand, has scored 20+ goals in four straight seasons. He could be an anchor not only for the second line, but also for the Kraken’s top six.

Bottom Six

Marchment is a newcomer, joining the Kraken in a trade with the Dallas Stars. The 30-year-old brings a veteran presence to the lineup, as well as someone who has playoff experience with the Stars. Wright will centre the third line, coming off a breakout season last year where he scored 19 goals. On the right wing is Tolvanen, coming off a 23-goal season, and he is just 20 goals away from 100 career tallies. This will be a solid depth line for the Kraken. The biggest question of this line is whether or not Wright can sustain and build off his success from last season.

Kartye’s numbers took a slight dip last season, but the 24-year-old will look to rebound on the team’s fourth line. Gaudreau is a newcomer to the Kraken. The veteran comes with playoff experience, having reached the Stanley Cup Final with the Nashville Predators in 2017. On the right wing, Nyman has only played in 12 NHL games and will likely need to earn the roster spot in training camp. He did record six points in those 12 games, so there is some offensive flair to his game.

Defence

Vince Dunn – Adam Larsson

Jamie Oleksiak – Brandon Montour

Ryan Lindgren – Ryker Evans

Top Four

Dunn will look to return to his form from a few seasons ago when he received Norris Trophy votes. When he is on his game, he can be a strong offensive defenceman. Next to Dunn on the top pair, Larsson will look to continue to be a consistent presence in the Kraken lineup. Since the 2021-22 season, Larsson has only missed one regular-season game. With 930 games under his belt, another full season will put Larsson on the doorstep of 1,000 games.

Oleksiak enters his fifth season with the Kraken on a small milestone watch. The defenceman needs 80 games to reach 500 games played. Furthermore, he is ten goals away from 50. On the second pairing, Montour is coming off a season in which he scored a career-high 18 goals. Montour had a bigger role with the Kraken last year and played well. The Kraken will hope to see that production continue, especially on the power play, where Montour recorded 11 points.

Bottom Pair

Lindgren is a new face in Seattle this season. He brings durability to his new team as well as playoff experience. Lindgren’s veteran presence will be beneficial to the young Evans, who is entering his third year in the league and is coming off a sophomore season in which he recorded 25 points in 73 games.

Goaltending

Joey Daccord

Philipp Grubauer

Last season was a career season for Daccord, setting career highs in games played and wins. His goals against average was up from the 2023-24 season, so that is something the Kraken would like to see lower. All things considered, Daccord is a solid option between the pipes for the Kraken.

Grubauer has played in fewer and fewer games since joining the Kraken for their inaugural season. Initially brought in to be a starter, Grubauer will enter the season as the Kraken’s backup. In four seasons in Seattle, Grubauer has a .890 save percentage alongside a 3.07 goals against average. This raises concern as to whether or not Grubauer can perform if the Kraken need him to step up.

Players to Watch

Jaden Schwartz

Schwartz can be valuable to the Kraken in more than one way this season. If the Kraken can contend for a playoff spot, Schwartz can help them get over the hump into the playoffs. In addition, Schwartz is a Stanley Cup Champion whose playoff experience would be valuable.

On the other hand, Schwartz is an unrestricted free agent after this season. Should the Kraken feel they are not playoff contenders, they could shop Schwartz at the trade deadline. If Schwartz is having a similar season as last year, the Kraken could get draft capital and/or young talent in exchange.

Ryker Evans

The second-round pick from 2021 had his first full season last year. He more than doubled his points from his rookie season. As he enters year three, can he build upon that success? Evans profiles as an offensive-minded defenceman. Will he showcase more of his offensive potential? Could he find his way into a larger role with the team?

Conversely, Evans is no slouch defensively. He is not afraid to use his body to block shots and make plays in the defensive zone. The 23-year-old is emerging as a solid two-way defenceman. Will he maintain that success in year three?

Prediction for the 2025-26 Seattle Kraken

The Kraken’s strength is their defence. However, their forward group and goaltending have question marks. There is potential for the offence to succeed, but there is also the possibility that some do not perform. While Daccord is emerging as a starter, there are concerns regarding Grubauer’s effectiveness. 

It is hard to label a team with these many holes as a legitimate playoff contender. However, we do not expect the Kraken to linger at the bottom of the standings. The Kraken will play competitive hockey and will be in the mix in March. This is not the year they return to the playoffs, though. 

Even if they do not make the playoffs, this season can still be a successful one. The Kraken will hopefully get answers to some of their questions. Young players may emerge. The future does seem bright in Seattle, just not in 2025-26.