3 questions facing Seattle Kraken

NHL.com is providing in-depth roster, prospect and fantasy analysis for each of its 32 teams from Aug. 1-Sept. 1. Today, three important questions facing the Seattle Kraken.

1. Can the Kraken take the next step?

Expectations are high after last season, when the Kraken made the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time, upset the defending champion Colorado Avalanche in seven games in the Western Conference First Round and took the Dallas Stars to Game 7 in the second round.

The Kraken will be in the spotlight this season too, hosting the defending champion Vegas Golden Knights in the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic at T-Mobile Park on Jan. 1.

That's good for a team that has felt underrated and underappreciated. That's also a high bar, though. And when Seattle reports to training camp, last season will be history, just as the 30th-place inaugural season was a year ago.

"We're coming from a different place," coach Dave Hakstol said. "But the reality is, you have to start every year with your feet on the ground. Everybody starts at zero."

2. Can Philipp Grubauer play like he did in the playoffs?

Grubauer was a big catch in free agency when he signed a six-year, $35.4 million contract with the Kraken on July 28, 2021, and a big disappointment when he went 18-31-5 with a 3.16 goals-against average and an .889 save percentage in their inaugural season.

But he went 17-14-4 with a 2.85 GAA and an .895 save percentage last season, and then was 7-7 with a 2.99 GAA and .903 save percentage in the playoffs. He was a big reason the Kraken upset the Avalanche, his former team, going 4-3 with a 2.44 GAA and .926 save percentage in the first round.

"I found my rhythm there," Grubauer said. "But there's always stuff to improve. You can always be a better teammate, a better player on the ice, and grow as a person."

3. Where will Shane Wright play?

It's complicated, but under the agreement between the NHL and Canadian Hockey League, Wright cannot play in the American Hockey League if he doesn't make the Kraken. The 19-year-old will have to return to the Ontario Hockey League, not the ideal spot for the No. 4 pick of the 2022 NHL Draft.

General manager Ron Francis said Seattle will seek an exception to allow Wright to go to the AHL if that's best for his development. The best solution would be for Wright to perform so well in training camp and the preseason that he convinces the Kraken to keep him.

Wright, who bounced between the NHL, AHL and junior hockey last season, showed up for development camp in July even though the Kraken told him he didn't have to.

"I've got to earn my spot," Wright said. "I've got to earn my ice time and prove and show to the coaches that I belong there."