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Analyzing Seattle’s expansion draft: Are the Kraken a playoff team? – Sportsnet.ca

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The Kraken has been released.

The NHL’s newest team has players as the Seattle Kraken unveiled their roster Wednesday night. The roster as it stands is the first iteration of what it will ultimately look like on opening night. The draft, trades, and free-agent signings will help shape this team into a final version that will take the ice next season.

What is clear is the Kraken placed a great deal of value on flexibility. Seattle left itself plenty of salary cap space to go after pending free agents like Gabriel Landeskog, Phillip Danault, and Dougie Hamilton. While the Kraken lack star power today, it may not be the case when the puck drops in October.

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According to our point projection model, the current Kraken roster projects to be an 86-point team next season, which isn’t a bad start — assuming Wednesday’s selections were just that, a start. The Kraken drafted goalies who have shown various degrees of promise, but none with an established track record of success in the NHL. Seattle accumulated an impressive group of defencemen, some of whom will likely be used as trade chips to acquire other assets. And at forward, the Kraken took a conservative approach, avoiding several high-profile players with big contracts.

With all of this in mind, let’s evaluate the Kraken expansion draft by taking a closer look at who they picked, who they didn’t and what areas they need to address.

The Kraken currently have a cap hit of just over $52.5 million, via CapFriendly, which gives them nearly $30 million of projected cap space to work with. Seattle has seven restricted and two unrestricted free agents to either sign, trade their rights or let walk when free agency opens July 28. The biggest cap hit on the Kraken roster is Mark Giordano who has one year left on his contract at $6.75 million. Giordano headlines a defence corps that is easily the strength of the team.

At 37 years old, Giordano showed he still has plenty left to give after scoring 26 points in 56 games last season. The former Flames captain can still eat big minutes in all situations and should be a calming influence on the Kraken blue line. Last season, Giordano ranked ninth among qualified defencemen in turnover rate, which measures how often a player turns the puck over relative to his total puck possessions. In the defensive zone, Giordano had the third-lowest turnover rate. New teammate Vince Dunn ranked second.

Giordano can be counted on to make the right play at the right time. In addition to being responsible with the puck, Giordano also makes an excellent first pass out of the defensive zone. He ranked sixth in outlet pass completions per game (11.5) and outlet pass completion success rate (78.1 per cent). Giordano also completed an average of 2.4 stretch passes per game, connecting on 80 per cent of his attempts which was second only to Neal Pionk.

Defensively, Giordano will help the Kraken in several areas, specifically slowing opposing teams down off the rush. At even strength, Giordano denied 52 per cent of all zone entries he faced, which ranked 16th among defencemen.

The Kraken’s defence-first approach was evident in signing pending unrestricted free agents Adam Larsson and Jamie Oleksiak. Larsson is a physical defender, ranking fifth in hits and second in blocked shots among defencemen last season. The 6-foot-7, 255-pound Oleksiak ranked seventh in hits and uses his large frame to push opponents off the puck, ranking fifth in puck battle wins per game.

In addition to being a physical force, Oleksiak skates well for a player his size and won’t be shy to join the rush with his new team. Add Carson Soucy, Kurtis MacDermid, and Jeremey Lauzon to the mix and it’s clear the Kraken wanted to form a defence corps that is physically imposing and will be tough to play against. Mission accomplished.

In goal, Seattle is betting Chris Driedger is the real deal. The 27-year-old has just 38 games of NHL experience, but 23 of those games came this past season with the Florida Panthers and he was easily Florida’s best goalie. Driedger finished the regular season fifth in save percentage at .927 and ranked 11th in goals saved above expected per 60 minutes at 0.19. Both were best among goalies made available to the Kraken.

Seattle also selected Vitek Vanecek from the Washington Capitals. The 25-year-old finished last season with a .908 save percentage in 37 games, which ranked 28th overall. Vanecek finished the season with a 2.69 goals-against average while the Capitals allowed an average of 2.37 expected goals against in the games he played. What that means is Vanecek allowed more goals than expected based on the quality and quantity of shots he faced. The Kraken will hope he can take the next step and challenge Driedger for the starting role. Seattle also drafted Joey Daccord from the Ottawa Senators, likely the team’s third goalie.

The forward position is likely where Seattle will look to make some big moves before opening night. As mentioned, the Kraken passed on some big-name, top-six forwards in favour of a group mainly comprised of depth forwards and prospects. That’s not to say there isn’t talent capable of taking on more responsibility with the Kraken.

Yanni Gourde, a third-line centre in Tampa Bay, will step into a top-six role and he is the most likely candidate to excel in a larger role. Gourde is a tenacious player who gets to loose pucks and pushes opponents off the puck at a high rate. He can generate shots and get pucks to teammates in the slot, where 75 per cent of all goals are scored. If Kraken fans are wondering who their most likely candidate is to breakout like William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault did in Vegas — Gourde is the guy.

Jordan Eberle is currently the Kraken’s highest-paid forward, with a cap hit of $5.5 million per season. In four years with the New York Islanders, Eberle averaged 0.62 points per game, which ranks 113th among all forwards with at least 200 games played in that time. It also happens to be the same points per game total as his new teammate in Gourde. Barring any major additions at right wing, Eberle will slot in as the Kraken’s top line right winger and will be counted on to provide offence on the power play. With nearly 800 games under his belt, Eberle is still a productive offensive player and solid puck-moving forward, raking in the 87th percentile last season in controlled zone entries and exits. The only forward on the Kraken roster who ranked higher was Joonas Donskoi, who ranked in the 93rd percentile.

Donskoi scored a career-high 17 goals in 51 games with the Colorado Avalanche while finishing the season with a well above average shooting percentage of 19.8. While repeating a shooting percentage of nearly 20 per cent may be unrealistic, there is evidence to suggest Donskoi can sustain an above-average shooting percentage. Just over 71 per cent of Donskoi’s shot attempts last season came from the slot. Only 13 players had a higher percentage of their shots from this scoring area. The better the shot quality, the more likely a player will be to post an above average shooting percentage (see Mark Scheifele). If Donskoi can continue to generate a majority of his shots from prime scoring areas, he should be able to build on his career-high goal total from last season.

Jared McCann, Morgan Geekie, Calle Jarnkrok, and Brandon Tanev are also dependable forwards who performed well in depth roles with their former teams. As mentioned, the Kraken have cap space to work with and should they choose to add some more offensive firepower by signing unrestricted free agents, they should have a competitive team next season.

General Manager Ron Francis made a point to keep costs down in the expansion draft and build from the net out. Driedger and Vanecek have shown, albeit in small samples, potential to be an effective platoon in net for Seattle. The Kraken boast an impressive group of defencemen which will be a pain in the butt to play against. Seattle drafted forwards who will also make it difficult to generate offence against. There is a need for proven goal scoring but, again there is plenty of time to address it in the coming weeks.

What is certain is there will be plenty of movement to come, starting at 1 pm ET today as the roster freeze lifts across the NHL and any side deals Seattle made are expected to be announced. Regardless, in a weak Pacific Division, there is reason to believe the Kraken will compete for a playoff spot in their inaugural season.

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Allen on trade to Devils from Habs: 'Sometimes you've got to be a little bit selfish' – Yahoo Canada Sports

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Jake Allen loved being a member of the Montreal Canadiens.

The hockey-mad market, the crackling Bell Centre on a Saturday night, the Original Six franchise’s iconic logo.

The 33-year-old goaltender is also realistic.

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With the Canadiens still in full rebuild mode — and two young netminders in Sam Montembeault and Cayden Primeau ready for more playing time — Allen could see the writing on the wall.

Desperate for help in their own crease, the New Jersey Devils asked Montreal about the veteran’s availability. But the team, general manager Tom Fitzgerald told reporters earlier this month, was initially on Allen’s no-trade list.

There wasn’t anything the Fredericton product disliked about the organization or city. The Devils simply appeared to have their crease set for years to come.

But when the club that finished with 112 points and made the second round of the playoffs in 2022-23 was badly hampered by poor play from Vitek Vanecek, Nico Daws and Akira Schmid — each netminder owned save percentages below .900 — the Devils circled back.

And Allen had changed his tune.

“Loved my time as a Hab,” he said of pulling on Montreal’s red, white and blue threads. “I always will cherish that. Put on probably the most special jersey in hockey, in my books. But you realize in your career, it doesn’t last forever.

“You’ve got to make decisions sometimes.”

Allen, who is signed through next season, eventually agreed to a deal that sent him to New Jersey ahead of the NHL’s March 8 trade deadline for a conditional third-round pick at the 2025 draft.

Apart from playing meaningful hockey on a team trying to claw its way back into the Eastern Conference playoff race, the swap gave him more runway to get his family settled in a new city instead of waiting to see what this summer’s crowded goalie market might bring.

“Sometimes you’ve got to be a little bit selfish,” said Allen, a Stanley Cup champion with the St. Louis Blues in 2019. “Look yourself in the mirror and wonder what’s best for you and your family.”

He’s been really good for his new team.

Allen was lights out in Tuesday’s first period against the Toronto Maple Leafs, making an eye-popping 25 saves in what would turn into New Jersey’s 6-3 victory.

So far he’s 4-2-0 with a .925 save percentage and a 2.51 goals against average in six starts for the Devils, who sit five points back of the East’s second wild-card spot.

“A real pro,” said interim head coach Travis Green.

Allen is a combined 10-14-3 in 2023-24 with a .900 save percentage and a 3.39 GAA. Across his 11 seasons with St. Louis, Montreal and now New Jersey, he’s 193-164-41 with a .908 save percentage and 2.75 GAA.

“Makes the saves we need to get some momentum back,” Devils captain Nico Hischier said. “If you have a solid goalie in the net, that makes your work easier.”

Allen is also 11-12 with a .924 and a 2.06 GAA all-time in the playoffs — a good sign for his new club should New Jersey manage to make the cut.

For now, though, he’s just enjoying being back in a post-season race.

“I thought this was a good opportunity to come in the rest of this year, play some games,” Allen said.

“It’s been a good start.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 28, 2024.

___

Follow @JClipperton_CP on X.

Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press

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Matthews game-time decision for Maple Leafs against Capitals with illness – NHL.com

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TORONTOAuston Matthews will be a game-time decision for the Toronto Maple Leafs against the Washington Capitals at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; SN1, MNMT) because of an illness.

“It’s going to be on how he feels throughout the day,” Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said.

The forward did not participate in Toronto’s morning skate. Max Domi took his place as the center on a line between Tyler Bertuzzi and Mitch Marner, a right wing recovering from a high-ankle sprain sustained March 7 and will be out the next two games.

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Matthews leads the NHL with 59 goals, one from becoming the ninth player in NHL history with at least two 60-goal seasons. He scored 60 in 73 games in 2021-22, when he won the Rocket Richard Trophy, Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award. He had one goal and nine shots in 23:44 of a 6-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, which extended his point streak to five games (four goals, seven assists).

He missed one game this season with illness, a 7-0 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Dec. 16.

“Of course, it’s an adjustment when your best player is out of the lineup,” Domi said, “when anybody is out of the lineup, but I think we’ve done a great job all year of guys stepping up when they have to, and we just have to continue to do that.”

Toronto defenseman Morgan Rielly will miss his second straight game with an upper-body injury.

“He just remains day to day,” Keefe said. “We’re hopeful he’s going to bounce back here. The one thing that is good is once he gets through this day or two here, it’s not going to be a lingering situation. It’s not going to be an injury that’s ongoing. Once he’s past it, he’s past it so we just need to give him some time.”

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Canucks place goalie Thatcher Demko on long-term injured list

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The Vancouver Canucks have placed all-star goalie Thatcher Demko on the long-term injured reserve list retroactively.

“It’s just cap related,” coach Rick Tocchet said after practice Wednesday. “We get some cap relief, that’s all it is.”

The 28-year-old netminder has been considered week to week since being sidelined with a lower-body injury midway through Vancouver’s 5-0 win over the Winnipeg Jets on March 9.

That injury designation hasn’t changed, Tocchet said.

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Demko boasts a 34-18-2 record this season, with a .917 save percentage, a 2.47 goals-against average and five shutouts.

Casey DeSmith has taken over the starting job for Vancouver, going 3-2-1 since Demko’s injury. He has a .899 save percentage on the season with a 2.73 goals-against average and one shutout.

The earliest Demko could be back in the Canucks’ lineup is April 6 against the Kings in Los Angeles.

He’s expected to be a key piece as Vancouver (45-19-8) prepares for its first playoff appearance since the COVID-shortened 2019-20 campaign.

Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin also announced Wednesday that the club has called up forward Arshdeep Bains from the Abbotsford Canucks of the American Hockey League.

“I’d like to see where [Bains is] at,” Tocchet said, noting he isn’t sure whether the 23-year-old winger will slot into the lineup when the Canucks host the Dallas Stars on Thursday.

WATCH | Bains makes NHL debut

 

Surrey, B.C.’s Arshdeep Bains makes Canucks debut

1 month ago

Duration 2:20

Arshdeep Bains from Surrey, B.C., has made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks Tuesday night against the Colorado Avalanche. As CBC’s Joel Ballard reports, it’s been a hard-fought journey for the hometown kid to the big leagues.

Bains played five games for the NHL team in February before being sent back to Abbotsford.

“He went down, he’s done a couple of things that we like, and he’s got some speed,” Tocchet said.

Vancouver may get another forward back in the lineup Thursday.

Dakota Joshua practised in a full-contact jersey on Wednesday for the first time since suffering an upper-body injury in Vancouver’s 4-2 win over the Blackhawks in Chicago on Feb. 13.

The physical winger, who’s set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, has a career-high 26 points (13 goals, 13 assists) this season.

Sitting out injured “hasn’t been fun,” Joshua said.

“It feels like forever,” he said. “But at this point, that’s behind me and I’m moving forward.”

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