- Seattle held a playoff spot at the Olympic break, then went 1-8-2 from March 17 to April 7
- Jason Botterill skipped the teardown and is betting on forwards who are 23 and under
- Read below for what the Kraken need from Mackie Samoskevich and a 31st-ranked penalty kill
The Seattle Kraken had a playoff spot in their hands and let it go in March.
Seattle was sitting in a postseason position when the league shut down for the 2026 Winter Olympics. The Kraken went 2-6-0 once play resumed, and an 11-game slide from March 17 to April 7 finished the job. They landed at 34-37-11, sixth in the Pacific Division and out of the playoffs for a third year in a row.
General manager Jason Botterill was asked what the club took away from that finish, per NHL.com.
“Proud of where we were going into the (Olympic) break but didn’t get the job done. So what do we have to tweak? What do we have to make adjustments on?”
His answer this summer was not a roster overhaul.
Bobby McMann re-signed for six years and $34.5 million rather than reaching free agency. On that same June 21, Seattle shipped the 25th pick in the 2026 draft and a conditional 2027 second-rounder to Florida for Mackie Samoskevich.
Samoskevich put up 27 goals over the past two seasons while buried down Florida’s depth chart, and he signed a three-year, $11.55 million deal on July 1. The 23-year-old was asked what he brings to his new team.
“That’s my biggest strength, speed with the puck. The team’s already got a ton of speed and a ton of talent, so adding to it will be a really good thing.”
He has a lot of ground to make up. Seattle finished 28th in the NHL at 2.73 goals per game, and the penalty kill was worse, ranking 31st at 72.2 percent. Coach Lane Lambert did not dress that up after the season.
“Penalty killing was a problem all year.”
Botterill wants young forwards Ryan Winterton and Jacob Melanson taking a bigger share of those shorthanded minutes. He also thinks seven or eight forwards 23 and under can make the opening night roster, and Kaapo Kakko already has a pick for the breakout.
“I hope it’s going to be Berkly Catton from our team. He’s pretty skilled, good player.”
Kakko also likes that a second year under Lambert lands in a shortened camp. Photo day is already done in Seattle:
The Kraken are not shopping the leftovers, either. Eeli Tolvanen is still unsigned in late August, and Seattle has not been one of the teams calling.
Next up is a two-game prospects series against the Canucks in Abbotsford on September 12 and 13:
