Ron Francis Extended by Kraken

Just 32 people have had the chance to spearhead building hockey operations for an NHL club from the ground up. Ron Francis is one of them. In just under four years as inaugural general manager of the Kraken, the two-time Stanley Cup champion and NHL Hall of Famer has laid foundations for success at all levels of the organization. And now, with the announcement today that the organization has extended Francis' contract, he'll continue that work through at least the 2026-27 season.

"Ron has done remarkable work over the last four years and deserves this recognition," said Seattle Kraken co-owner, Samantha Holloway. "He has built a tremendous team, putting Seattle hockey on the map. He is building for long term success and is dedicated to our city, our fans, and our community." Francis was hired in July 2019, two years before the 2021 Expansion Draft and with a lot to do. He had to build out a staff that included research and development, coaches, scouting and ultimately players. There was also the need to construct a quality group of prospects that could evolve and sustain success at all levels of play.

Now two years into having an on-ice product, Seattle is proud to house an NHL squad that earned 100 points and went on an impressive push to the Western Conference Semi-Finals; an AHL squad currently playing in the Western Conference Final; NHL awards finalists (coach and rookie of the year); and a growing pool of prospects.

All of that is a reflection of the effort by Francis and his team to exhaust every avenue to bring in the right talent for the organization.

"We said from day one, we want to do two things," Francis said at the conclusion of the 2022-23 NHL season. "We want to have a competitive team up top which I think we built, and we want to continue to build from the ground up. . .. We've talked about the way we build this. And we use a lot of different things: we use cap space and free agency; we use the trades and the draft picks we accumulated; we use our amateur staff and drafting guys. . .our pro staff has helped us on all those other things (such as) the waiver wire.

"We have been able to maintain what we set out to do. . .If there's a way we can improve our team and we feel makes us better, we're certainly not going to hesitate to do that. We think we've got a good group and we're headed in the right direction.

While last season's team defied the odds and exceeded expectations with resilient, relentless and selfless play, off the ice they're becoming part of the fabric of our community."I'd like to thank the ownership group for their continued faith in me," Francis commented ahead of today's press conference. "I'm surrounded by a talented staff and unbelievable fans who've shown incredible passion for this team. I'm excited for the future and look to build upon the strong foundation we've established.

With Francis now focused on the 2023 draft, what are those building blocks that have created the most impact?

Trading for Value
The Kraken have made trades to bring in value not just for real-time impact but to sustain future success. At the 2022 trade deadline, Francis added ten future draft picks to the bank that would become currency to deepen the prospect pipeline - including recently signed forward, David Goyette. Those picks also powered the off-season trade for Oliver Bjorkstrand who had the fourth 20-goal season of his career this year and scored the series winning goal against the defending Stanley Cup champion, Colorado Avalanche.

Free Agency
Francis' trademark patience has also maintained a significant amount of cap space which he leveraged in free agent signings. Stanley Cup champions Andre Burakovsky and Justin Schultz joined the Kraken team last summer. Martin Jones became part of this season's goaltending tandem and played in key moments including a large chunk of the team's historic eight-game win streak.

"(At the deadline last year), we traded (a few) guys," Jordan Eberle said. "You weren't really sure what direction we were going, and Ron addressed some of the older guys and said 'this isn't a rebuild. We still want to add pieces and use these to be a good team right off the bat.'

"And then you go on to summer they add 'Burkie,' they add 'Bjorky,' they add 'Schultzy' to 'Jonesy.' Those are a lot of good veteran players that are respected in this league. That gives you some excitement."

Free agency has also deepened the roots of talent for the Kraken. Undrafted Tye Kartye joined the organization after signing a contract last March and became a significant contributor at both the AHL and NHL levels. Players like Ville Petman and Luke Henman have also been key finds for Seattle's depth and development.

Waiver Wire Evaluation
Francis' keen eye for talent has also led to finding value where it may have previously gone unnoticed. Eeli Tolvanen joined the Kraken in December off the waiver wire and went on to have the fourth best goal scoring rate (1.34 per 60) of all players on the roster this year.

"Adding players like Tolvy who was a huge piece…you have a lot of faith in what (the front office) is doing in the way that they're building this team," Eberle said. "I think they have done an exceptional job."

Draft and Development
Talent growth from within the organization has been a key tenant of Francis' approach and it's already paying off. Matty Beniers, the first-ever player selected by Seattle in an Entry Draft (2021, 2nd overall) burst onto the NHL scene at the end of the Kraken's inaugural season and became a permanent fixture on the roster this year. The center has, deservedly, earned a nod as a finalist for NHL Rookie of the Year.

Eighteen drafted players fill the Kraken pipeline at present, including Shane Wright, and the team has up to ten possible picks to use at the 2023 NHL Draft in June with another 16 pending over the following two years.

"I think the way we wanted to set our team up we were really patient with how we wanted to do it," Vince Dunn said. "I think management did a great job of building a really good foundation for this team and organization. Everyone's on board and it's really special. To see that we have everyone…management, ownership…they're all in and that's really exciting to be a part of."