Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Seattle Kraken Torn Apart by Analyst for Horrible Financial Situation

Originally posted on House of Hockey | By Daniel Lucente | Last updated Aug 6, 2025 11:12 AM ET

Every summer, NHL analyst Dom Luszczyszyn compares every player's contracts on teams and grades them overall, and the Seattle Kraken are dead last with a D+.

Every summer, NHL analyst Dom Luszczyszyn breaks down the league's salary-cap landscape, grading each team on their salary-cap usage efficiency.

That means calculating each player's market value for the remainder of his contract, versus actual compensation, and projecting whether each deal will be good or bad value.

With the salary cap set to rise by a great deal over the next three years, lots of those previously suspect contracts are beginning to look plausible. Most clubs have benefited from that trend, but not everybody.

The Seattle Kraken earned the worst possible grade: D+. Nobody is spending money more ineptly.

Dom Luszczyszyn even hypothetically combined Jack Hughes' elite $8-million contract with Seattle's current $7 million in available cap space, and that would not make this team a playoff one. That indicates the extent to which roster construction is bad.

Seattle is Paying $35 Million to Players Performing Under Expectations

Seattle is paying nearly $35 million for Chandler Stephenson, Jaden Schwartz, Brandon Montour, Adam Larsson, Jamie Oleksiak, Ryan Lindgren, and Philipp Grubauer, a group of players who are playing well below their expectations.

Years of free-agent overpaying have provided the team with a large cap sheet with very little to show for it.

There are positives. Joey Daccord's contract is good for a goalie, and in case Matty Beniers ever blows up offensively, the deal can prove to be a steal.

But in general, the Kraken are in a tricky position, paying premium money for mediocrity without having the depth of talent to contend. Makeover-level changes will be needed in order to steer this franchise in a better direction.

This article first appeared on House of Hockey and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: