Kraken sign Bobby McMann to six-year extension

The 30-year-old had a breakout performance in 2025-26. After putting up 20 goals and 14 assists in 74 games in his first full NHL campaign in 2024-25, he picked up the production this past season. He started the year with Toronto and was playing at a similar pace, tallying 19 goals and 13 assists in 62 games. However, after he and the Maple Leafs were unable to come to terms on a contract extension before the trade deadline, he was dealt to Seattle at the trade deadline for a 2027 second-round pick and a 2026 fourth-rounder.

The Kraken were hoping to stay in the playoff mix and McMann did his best to help in those efforts. He picked up 10 goals and four assists in just 18 games following the swap although it wasn’t enough to help secure Seattle a postseason berth.

In the team’s announcement about the signing, it was noted that McMann spent a lot of time speaking to the team’s leadership group (both on-ice and off-ice) to help shape his decision about either potentially staying or testing the open market in July. On top of having a comfort level with head coach Lane Lambert (who briefly coached McMann during his time with Toronto), the veteran elaborated about his other reasons for sticking around:

"It starts with the support of ownership straight on through management and the eagerness to get better there. And then it’s also the younger assets they have with draft picks and players that are coming up that can be impact players in a couple of years. And there’s the side of it where I’m starting to be a bit of an older player, a bit of a veteran in a league where I can somewhat fill the role on the leadership side of it. The mentorship side of it. That gets me excited. That I can have a part in shaping the organization, shaping younger players and pushing it in a direction that’s winning hockey."

There is certainly some risk on the part of the Kraken with this contract. McMann only has 218 career NHL games under his belt, less than the equivalent of three full seasons. It’s clear that they think his breakout is sustainable while a potential 20-goal floor is certainly enticing. They made a similar gamble last summer when they gave Kaapo Kakko a three-year, $13.575M contract on the heels of a solid half-season with the team, believing that his breakout could be repeated. That one worked relatively well (aside from some injury issues) and now, they’re doubling down on the strategy with an even bigger deal for McMann.

With the signing, the Kraken now have a little more than $22.5M remaining in cap space for next season, per PuckPedia. Samoskevich is their lone pending restricted free agent of significance but some prominent veterans could be hitting the open market a week and a half from now. Among their pending unrestricted free agents are wingers Jaden Schwartz and Eeli Tolvanen along with defenseman Jamie Oleksiak. Those players will need to be re-signed or replaced, meaning that GM Jason Botterill still has his work cut out for him this offseason.

TSN’s Darren Dreger was the first to report the contract terms.