Seattle Kraken 2023-24 NHL Season Preview
We just saw the expansion Vegas Golden Knights win the Stanley Cup in six years. The Seattle Kraken will head into year three of their existence. So far… so good! Seattle won a playoff series in year two over the defending champion Avalanche. What should we expect from the Kraken heading into the 2023-24 NHL Season? Let’s talk about it!
Line Combination (Combinations Obtained via DailyFaceoff.com)
Not pictured are the goalies which include Philipp Grubauer and Chris Driedger. Joey Daccord may eventually get a look too.
Otherwise, the team looks pretty similar to last year. Not a ton of changes. It’s a team that’s built of four second lines and they just come at you in waves. It will be a matter of if they can get better goaltending than a season ago. Remember, Martin Jones started 48 games for this team last year. That’s not meant to be a compliment. If they get better play in that area, maybe they take another step forward.
New Faces
The forward group is mostly the same outside of adding Pierre-Édouard Bellemare and Kailer Yamamoto for the 4th line. Carson Soucy goes out for Brian Dumoulin. That basically wraps up the changes.
Three Players To Watch
- Jared McCann
It was a monster breakout season for McCann posting a career high 70 points in 79 games. McCann scored 40 goals and the point total could have been higher if he had more producers around him. Really it’s the metrics that blow you away. The guy carried a 19% shooting rate a season ago. If that continues, McCann will establish himself as a star in the league. It’s also an almost impossible task to carry that shooting rate again.
- Andre Burakovsky
Burakovsky was a bust in his first season in Seattle. 39 points in 49 games is pretty good but he got hurt at the wrong time. Imagine what this team could look like with a healthy Burakovsky? We know he can put the puck in the back of the net but we’re all waiting for him to take that next step. Be this year’s version of Jared McCann. If that happens, the ceiling of the Kraken goes up.
- Matty Beniers
I love Beniers. The kid is really good. He posted 57 points in his first full year at the NHL level. Beniers really cares about the defensive side of the game too. Heading into year two, Beniers could take off like a rocket ship. He’s the most complete player the team has. If he turns into a number one center, look out.
Biggest Riser
Vince Dunn is living life. Dunn broke out last year posting 64 points in 81 games and has taken over as the top defenseman in Seattle. Dunn also got paid too! Dunn found a nice home in Seattle after a rocky road in St. Louis. He’s young enough that he can continue to build on his game too.
Biggest Faller
Maybe this is harsh but Jaden Schwartz feels like he’s on the decline. He was a -17 last year on a team that was mostly positive. Yes, he had 21 goals last year but only 40 total points. It just doesn’t look like he’s the same guy from his peak in St. Louis. We’re sure Seattle can’t do better for that top six role on the left side?
The Biggest Question Is…
Philipp Grubauer stinks. This contract never made sense when it happened. Grubauer posted a .895 SV% which is actually an improvement from what he did in his first season with Seattle. If he stinks again, which is likely, there is just only so far the Kraken will go.
Verdict
I have Seattle outside of the playoffs. I think they will take a step back as sort of a sophomore slump kind of deal. The Kraken had 13 guys score at least 13 goals last year. Kinda crazy when you think about it. It’s hard to get that kind of production from your entire lineup. I think the rest of the Pacific is just too strong and Seattle will miss out before rebounding next year.
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