Other Reasons Why Players Sign with the Kraken
In his media meetup, McMann emphasized additional factors in signing with Seattle. For one thing, he said the Kraken facilities and support staff are elite across the NHL. He is far from alone praising Climate Pledge Arena and Kraken Community Iceplex, something emanating from his teammates, opposing players and coaches.
The support staff includes a strength and conditioning group that guides and customizes individual programs for each Kraken roster member while also helping with prospects playing for American Hockey League affiliate Coachella Valley, junior leagues, NCAA conferences and European pro and amateur circuits. The training staff provides state-of-the-art modalities for performance, recovery and optimal nutrition among other things.
For example, 2024 second rounder Julius Miettinen underwent a rigorous and personally-designed midseason program with Kraken strength and conditioning coach Nate Brookreson’s input. Miettinen’s buy-in resulted in the Finnish power forward enjoying a monstrous second half for Western Hockey League Everett, winning WHL Most Valuable Players honors as the Silvertips reached the final of the storied Memorial Cup.
Another proof point: Kraken winger and 2021 third rounder Ryan Winterton, arguably ahead of schedule as a just-turned 22-year-old, made the NHL roster out of camp last September with Lambert praising Winterton’s speed and stellar 200-foot game all season long. Two summers ago, Winterton took on an ambitious summer training program that prompted several other Kraken prospects to ask for a similar program the following offseason.
Being the Best Possible Players
“The team works really hard at making sure guys are optimizing themselves,” said McMann Wednesday morning. “That comes from ownership management all the way down. Ownership is willing to invest in the players and invest in things like nutrition, invest in strength and conditioning, invest in performance. Those things are huge for me because that's where I focus a lot of my attention in my preparation and how I'm treating and taking care of myself. And how can I get myself to the best possible player that I can be?"
McMann, who scored a career-high 29 goals last season, said the optimization and desire to seek personal best performance is contagious in a positive way.
“For young guys coming in, they see guys that have played in the league for a while, guys that have had success, taking advantage of our strength and conditioning coaches... We have nutritionists and we have exceptional food available. Our chefs are amazing. Everybody in the organization is pushing to make sure all the guys have to do is play hockey. I want that for myself, but I also want the guys around me to be pushing and utilizing all those things to be the best they can possibly be.”
As for those aforementioned prospects, the Calgary native is keen on young players pushing for Kraken roster spots after starring at Coachella Valley, along with recent draft choices playing major roles for their minor pro and junior teams and being integral to related championships at those levels.
“In those conversations with Botts, I realized the depth of this organization,” said McMann. “You've seen that Coachella Valley has had good success. There are [Firebirds] players that are young and have a ton of talent and projecting to have great careers in the NHL. With all of those pieces in conjunction with Botts having the drive to make this team better – and ownerships pushing to do that as well – there is a great future for this organization.
“I want to be a part of that. I want to be a guy who can kind of establish a culture right away. Bring those [young] guys in, get those guys to be the best players they can be when they're coming from the American League or juniors. Get guys to jump in right away and have a big impact. I want to be there to establish that and continue to push with those guys.”
Working with Lambert is Plus-Plus
When asked whether his connection with Lambert was part of deciding to forego free agency, McMann was resoundingly in the yes column. Along with last spring, McMann played a full Toronto season with Lambert as an assistant coach.
“It definitely did [lead to his decision to sign long-term],” said McMann. “Lane has shown a lot of confidence in me from the second I got there. He was pumped to have me after the trade and then continued through those last 18 games. He put a ton of confidence in me, put me in key situations, made me feel like I could play my game freely. If you talk to anybody, that's what any player wants, to just play free, play to the best of abilities, play to strengths and be themselves. When you're doing that, guys call it the flow state, that's where you want to be and how you want to play.”
Make no mistake, both Botterill and Lambert prioritized signing McMann. Those conversations were candid, open, decidedly two-way, constructive, and ultimately successful.
“I had meetings with [Lambert] after the season. Went over to his house, we chatted for a while, talked about the trajectory of the season, talked about the previous season [in Toronto], how things went, how I played. What situations I played in, where he could maybe see me in the future. Those sorts of things were all huge for me continuing to be in Seattle.”
