Kraken, Predators Swap Shane Wright, Matthew Wood

It looks like a pair of recent first-round picks will be swapping teams. According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Nashville Predators and Seattle Kraken are working on a trade that would send Shane Wright to the Predators and Matthew Wood to the Kraken. According to Nick Kieser of Lower Broad Hockey, it’s a one-for-one swap. The Kraken announced the trade.

It’s an intriguing change of scenery for both players. Wright, 22, has been mentioned in trade speculation for the last few months. In early July, Friedman reported that the Kraken were actively working with Wright to find him a new situation. A few weeks later, Ben Kuzma of The Province reported in an article that Wright listed the Vancouver Canucks as his preferred destination, with the Canucks being reported to have mutual interest in acquiring him.

Fast forward a few months, and Wright was still with Seattle. Although he remained interested in a trade, Wright committed to the Kraken for the time being and joined the team for training camp. Now, the former fourth-overall pick of the 2022 NHL Draft finally gets his wish.

Throughout his first professional season, Wright played eight games for the Kraken and eight games for the AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds. He was relatively average in the NHL, scoring a goal and an assist while averaging 8:29 of ice time on Seattle’s fourth line. Seattle returned Wright to the OHL, where he joined the Windsor Spitfires, who had acquired his rights from the Kingston Frontenacs. Wright finished the OHL season scoring 15 goals and 37 points in 20 games with a +8 rating.

Wright returned to the professional ranks later that season, helping the Firebirds reach the Calder Cup playoffs. In the postseason, he registered two goals and nine points in 24 games. Wright appeared in eight more games for the Kraken the following season, but mostly featured with Coachella Valley. He finished the 2023-24 season with 22 goals and 47 points in 59 games with a +6 rating, with another four goals and 13 points in 12 postseason appearances.

Since then, it’s been all NHL for Wright. Initially, Seattle believed that Wright was blossoming into the player who was the projected first overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. It was a solid campaign as Wright finished with 19 goals and 44 points in 79 games with a +4 rating, averaging 14:04 of ice time per game. Still, his 44.4% faceoff rate and 89.4% on-ice SV% at even strength left a lot to be desired, especially since Wright was billed as a solid two-way center, even drawing comparisons to Patrice Bergeron when drafted.

Unfortunately, Wright has not improved. In 88 games since the conclusion of the 2024-25 campaign, Wright has scored 15 goals and 31 points with a +6 rating and a dismal 40.6% faceoff rate. The stalling of his development increased frustration in Seattle, leading to today’s trade.