Seattle Kraken

The Seattle Kraken are a professional ice hockey team based in Seattle. The Kraken compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and began play during the league's 2021–22 season. They play their home games at Climate Pledge Arena.

In December 2018, the NHL approved a proposal by Seattle Hockey Partners to grant an expansion franchise to the city of Seattle. In July 2020, the Kraken's name and branding were revealed. The Kraken are the first professional ice hockey team to play in Seattle since the Seattle Totems of the Western Hockey League played their last game in 1975. They are also the first Seattle team to compete for the Stanley Cup since the Seattle Metropolitans, who won the Cup in 1917 and folded in 1924. On October 26, 2021, the team raised a banner commemorating the 1917 title team.

The only time the Kraken qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs was in 2023, when the Kraken faced off against the Colorado Avalanche. They would upset the Avalanche in seven games, becoming the first team to win their inaugural playoff series against the defending Stanley Cup champion. However, they would lose to the Dallas Stars in the second round.

Establishment (2017–2021)
On December 4, 2017, the Seattle City Council voted 7–1 to approve a memorandum of understanding between the city of Seattle and the Los Angeles-based Oak View Group for renovations of KeyArena. Renovations began in 2018 and were completed in 2021. The arena was renamed Climate Pledge Arena after a new naming rights deal was signed with Amazon. On December 7, the NHL's board of governors agreed to consider an expansion application from Seattle, with an expansion fee set at US$650 million. The Seattle ownership group was represented by David Bonderman and Jerry Bruckheimer, who conducted a preliminary season ticket drive to gauge interest in Seattle.

On February 13, 2018, Oak View Group filed an application with the NHL for an expansion team and paid a US$10 million application fee. At the time, the earliest a Seattle NHL expansion team could have begun playing was the 2020–21 season pending the completion of arena renovations.

On March 1, a ticket drive began to gauge interests in season ticket deposits. Oak View Group reported that their initial goal of 10,000 deposits was surpassed in 12 minutes, and that they received 25,000 deposits in 75 minutes. On April 11, 2018, Tod Leiweke was named CEO of Seattle's NHL expansion team. On June 18, 2018, Dave Tippett was named as a senior advisor. Another step towards an expansion team was taken on October 2, when the NHL Executive Committee unanimously agreed to recommend the expansion bid to a vote of the Board of Governors in December.

The NHL Board of Governors voted unanimously to approve Seattle's expansion team on December 4, to begin play in the 2021–22 season as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference. As a result, the Arizona Coyotes were shifted from the Pacific Division to the Central Division to balance out the four divisions at eight teams each. The organization hired Ron Francis as their general manager to initiate operations for the team.

On July 23, 2020, the franchise announced their team name, the Seattle Kraken, as well as their team colors, branding, and home jersey. The team's name comes from the mythical kraken of Scandinavian folklore and its resemblance to the native giant Pacific octopus, which is found in the waters of the Puget Sound, near Seattle. The state of Washington is also home to a significant number of people with Scandinavian ancestry.

On April 30, 2021, the franchise paid the final installment of the $650 million expansion fee, officially making the Kraken the 32nd team of the NHL.

First seasons (2021–present)
The Kraken made their first signing, Luke Henman, on May 12, 2021. On June 24, the organization hired Dave Hakstol as their inaugural head coach. On June 28, the Kraken announced the Charlotte Checkers as their inaugural American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate team, sharing them with the Florida Panthers.

An expansion draft was held on July 21, in a similar manner to a previous expansion draft held in 2017 for the Vegas Golden Knights, who were themselves exempt from the 2021 expansion draft. Notable selections included Jordan Eberle from the New York Islanders and Mark Giordano from the Calgary Flames. The Kraken selected their first draft pick, Matty Beniers, as the second overall selection at the 2021 NHL entry draft. The Kraken also signed many other players. Notable signings included goaltender Philipp Grubauer and forwards Jaden Schwartz and Alexander Wennberg. On October 11, the Kraken named Mark Giordano as the team's inaugural captain.

The Kraken played their first regular season game on October 12, a 4–3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, where Ryan Donato scored the team's first goal. The Kraken's first win came in their second game on October 14, when they defeated the Nashville Predators 4–3. Following a 6–1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers, goaltender Joey Daccord was named the starter instead of Grubauer in a 4–2 loss to the New Jersey Devils. The Kraken played their first home game at Climate Pledge Arena on October 23, a 4–2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks. Prior to the game, the Kraken retired jersey number 32, in recognition of the franchise being the 32nd to join the NHL and in honor of the 32,000 fans who placed deposits for tickets on the first possible day. The Kraken picked up their first home win on October 26, against the Montreal Canadiens. Goaltender Chris Driedger made his first start with the Kraken on November 9, in a 4–2 loss to the Golden Knights. The Kraken had several losing streaks in their season. However, Philipp Grubauer recorded the franchise's first shutout, making 19 saves in an 3–0 victory against the New York Islanders. On March 20, 2022, the Kraken's captaincy became vacant after Giordano was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Kraken were eliminated from playoff contention on March 30 following a 3–0 loss to the Golden Knights. The Kraken finished their inaugural season in last place of the Pacific Division with a 27–49–6 record and 60 points.

The Kraken's second season was far better in terms of winning. On July 13, 2022, the Kraken signed Martin Jones to a one-year contract. He made his debut with the Kraken on October 13, notching a 4–1 victory. In early January, Jones led the Kraken through an 8-game win streak. In doing, so the Kraken became the first team to win all seven games of a road trip. On April 6, the Kraken clinched their first playoff berth, qualifying for the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs as the first wild card from the Western Conference with a record of 46–28–8 and 100 points. On April 13, it was announced that forward Andre Burakovsky would miss the first round of the playoffs after missing the last 33 games of the season, due to an unspecified lower body injury. On April 30, they defeated the Colorado Avalanche in the opening round, becoming the first expansion team in NHL history to win their first playoff series against the defending Stanley Cup champions. The Kraken lost to the Dallas Stars in the second round in seven games. Both series lasted the full seven games. On June 26, Matty Beniers was named the winner of the Calder Memorial Trophy for being the NHL rookie of the year.

The Kraken struggled offensively in their third season, only producing 217 goals. Prior to the season, the Kraken re-signed goaltender Joey Daccord. In December and January, following an eight-game skid, Daccord started in eight out of nine games of a franchise record nine-game win streak, part of a 13-game point streak. In the midst of the streak, Daccord played in the 2024 NHL Winter Classic, where he achieved the first shutout in Winter Classic history with a 3–0 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights. Two days before the NHL's Trade Deadline, the Kraken traded Wennberg to the New York Rangers in exchange for second and fourth round picks. The Kraken were eliminated from playoff contention on April 3, following a 5–2 loss to the Los Angeles Kings. The Kraken finished their season with a 34–35–13 record and 81 points. On April 29, following the season, head coach Dave Hakstol was fired, being replaced by Coachella Valley Firebirds head coach Dan Bylsma on May 28.

Arena
The team plays home games at Climate Pledge Arena. The arena, at Seattle Center, is a $930 million redevelopment of the former KeyArena and Seattle Center Coliseum. Amazon bought the naming rights to Climate Pledge Arena and chose to name the venue after its environmental goals. The venue has 17,151 seats in its NHL configuration; 6,000 seats are reserved for half-season ticket holders, who were given the choice of packages named the "Blue Line" and "Red Line". All fans holding tickets are given free transit passes to and from the arena, which is served by several bus routes and the Seattle Center Monorail.

The team's primary practice facility, named the Kraken Community Iceplex, is located at Northgate Station (formerly Northgate Mall) and was opened in September 2021. The facility has three rinks and is open to the public. A second community ice rink is proposed for a former park-and-ride lot in Kirkland on the Eastside.

The Kraken's three home preseason games prior to the 2021–22 season were held at Spokane Arena in Spokane, Angel of the Winds Arena in Everett, and the accesso ShoWare Center in Kent, which are all home to Western Hockey League (WHL) teams. Tickets were sold by the host WHL teams.

The Kraken played their first home game at Climate Pledge Arena on October 23, 2021, a 4–2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks. Vince Dunn scored the first goal in the arena's history for Seattle. They won their first game in the arena on October 26, a 5–1 victory against the Montreal Canadiens. Their first shutout win at home was a 3–0 victory over the San Jose Sharks on April 29, 2022, the final home game of the inaugural season.

In-arena entertainment
The Kraken use the horn from the MV Hyak ferry boat as their goal horn. At the first two home games, the Hyak's horn was not yet functional, so the team played a recording of it. The team plays the Nirvana song "Lithium" after every Kraken goal at home.

After their first win at home against the Montreal Canadiens on October 26, 2021, the Kraken featured a new postgame tradition during the "Three Stars of the Game" ceremony. Instead of the honored players tossing conventional souvenir pucks or sticks to the fans, they throw a plush toy salmon into the crowd to mimic Seattle's Pike Place Market fish toss and to honor the significance of wild-caught salmon to the state of Washington.

Rod Masters, the organist from the 1977 film Slap Shot, became the organist for the Kraken starting with the team's January 1, 2022, home game. As Climate Pledge Arena does not have an organ, Masters played music using electronic keyboards. Masters retired after the 2021–22 season, and the Kraken hired 29-year-old Ben Wooley to replace him.

Logo and uniforms
The Kraken unveiled their logo on July 23, 2020. The logo was a callback to the "S" worn by the Seattle Metropolitans, while also appearing like the tentacle of a kraken. The colors chosen for the logo were ice blue, boundless blue, shadow blue and red alert. The Kraken's secondary logo represents an anchor combined with the Space Needle.

The Kraken unveiled its inaugural uniforms on July 22, 2021. Deep sea blue served as the base color with the logo's colors as accent colors.

The Kraken unveiled its "Reverse Retro" uniform in the 2022–23 season, featuring an ice blue base with deep sea blue striping. The design was a callback to the Seattle Ironmen, a defunct Pacific Coast Hockey League (PCHL) team that existed in the 1940s.

In the 2024 NHL Winter Classic, the Kraken wore a uniform inspired by the Seattle Metropolitans' sweaters. The deep sea blue uniform features a red "S" similar to the Metropolitans' crest, but shaped to the current "S" logo of the Kraken, with the team name written inside. Ice blue, vintage white and deep sea blue stripes were added to the body and sleeves. The uniform was officially unveiled on November 22, 2023, but was leaked four days earlier when players from the NBA's Utah Jazz walked to the Delta Center wearing the Kraken's Winter Classic uniform.

Mascot
Buoy, a sea troll, is the Kraken's mascot. He is said to be a nephew of the Fremont Troll. Buoy was introduced prior to a preseason game against the Canucks on October 1, 2022, at Climate Pledge Arena. The Kraken had intended to introduce Buoy around Christmas during the 2021–22 season, but due to game postponements related to the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, the team decided to wait until prior to the 2022–23 season instead. Reaction to Buoy's debut was polarized, with many observers expressing a strong like or dislike for the mascot. On his Spittin' Chiclets podcast, Paul Bissonnette called Buoy "the ugliest mascot of all time".

During the 2021–22 season, in the absence of an official mascot, the Kraken promoted a "team dog" named Davy Jones. The dog, a four-month-old husky mix rescue dog introduced on January 17, 2022, socialized with fans at home games as he trained to be a therapy dog.

Radio
Everett Fitzhugh serves as the team's primary radio play-by-play announcer. Fitzhugh had previously done play-by-play for the ECHL's Cincinnati Cyclones. He is the first Black full-time play-by-play announcer in NHL history. Former NHL player and Vancouver Canucks broadcaster Dave Tomlinson served as Fitzhugh's color analyst for the first two seasons, before resigning in August 2023 to take a new broadcasting job in Canada. Fitzhugh tested positive for COVID-19 prior to the Kraken's first regular season road trip; on radio broadcasts, TV announcer John Forslund and veteran KJR broadcaster Ian Furness filled in on play-by-play duties.

Kraken games are broadcast on KJR-FM 93.3 and KJR 950 AM, the flagship stations of the Kraken Audio Network. During a schedule conflict, some games may be heard on 96.5 KJAQ. The Kraken Audio Network also includes the following stations outside Seattle:


 * KTZN AM 550 Anchorage
 * KPUG AM 1170 / FM 97.9 Bellingham
 * KBDB-FM 96.7 Forks
 * KTKU FM 105.1 HD2 Juneau
 * KAPS AM 660 Mount Vernon
 * KONP AM 1450 Port Angeles
 * KPOJ AM 620 Portland
 * KALE AM 960 Richland
 * K257FX FM 99.3 Spokane
 * KUTI AM 1460 Yakima
 * KCRX FM 102.3 Astoria
 * KOFE AM 1240 St. Maries
 * KVOK FM 98.7 Kodiak Island
 * KIFW AM 1230 Sitka

Television
On April 25, 2024, the Kraken signed a deal with Tegna, owners of Seattle NBC affiliate KING-TV and independent KONG, to air their games throughout their territory, with streaming handled by Prime Video. Kraken games were broadcast regionally on Root Sports Northwest for the team's first three seasons. Former Hartford Whalers and Carolina Hurricanes broadcaster John Forslund serves as the team's television play-by-play announcer. J. T. Brown is the Kraken's first television analyst. In August 2022, the team hired Eddie Olczyk to be a television analyst alongside Forslund and Brown. Olczyk would maintain his job at TNT as the lead color commentator and would call the Kraken's games as his schedule allowed.

Alison Lukan is a studio analyst for Root Sports Northwest who filled in for Brown for a few games during the 2021–22 season and did the same for Olczyk and Piper Shaw for the 2022–23 season onward. Nick Olczyk joined her as a TV, radio, and mobile app contributor for the 2022–23 season.

The telecast for the Kraken's February 17, 2022, game against the Winnipeg Jets had Fitzhugh on play-by-play and Brown on color commentary, comprising the first all-Black broadcast booth in NHL history.

Television ratings
In their first season, the Kraken averaged a 0.96 Nielsen rating for games broadcast on Root Sports Northwest. By comparison, the Vegas Golden Knights averaged a 1.87 rating in their first season for games broadcast locally on AT&T Rocky Mountain.

From the beginning of their second season through mid-January 2023, the Kraken averaged a 0.68 rating, in the lowest third of the 23 US NHL markets for which Nielsen ratings were available, despite a much better record than their first season at the same point. The team launched a new show, entitled What's Kraken?, on over-the-air station KCPQ, to broaden fan support during the 2022–23 season. Seattle's high percentage of "broadband only" homes, without cable or satellite TV service, and the unavailability of Root Sports Northwest on most over-the-top media services, contributed to the low ratings.

During their second and third seasons, the Kraken averaged a 0.7 Nielsen rating for their October games on Root Sports Northwest. Shortly before the 2022–23 season, Comcast moved Root Sports Northwest to a higher-priced tier of service, due to the high cost and low demand for the channel.

Minor league affiliates
The Coachella Valley Firebirds, the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Kraken, are based in Thousand Palms, California. Due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and delays in building Acrisure Arena, the Firebirds began play in the 2022–23 season. The Firebirds played home games during the first two months of their 2022–23 season in the Seattle metropolitan area, including one game at Climate Pledge Arena, before playing their first game at Acrisure Arena on December 18, 2022.

The Charlotte Checkers, the primary AHL affiliate of the Florida Panthers, also served as the AHL affiliate for the Kraken during the 2021–22 season due to the delay in the Kraken's AHL team. The Checkers, an independently owned AHL team, had been the affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes while the Kraken's general manager Ron Francis was working for the Hurricanes.

For their inaugural season, the Kraken's ECHL affiliate was the Texas-based Allen Americans who were replaced by the Kansas City Mavericks in that capacity for the 2022–23 season.

Season-by-season record
''This is a list of the seasons completed by the Kraken. For the full season-by-season history, see List of Seattle Kraken seasons''.

GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against

Owners
The team is owned by Seattle Hockey Partners, an organization consisting of David Bonderman, Jerry Bruckheimer and Tod Leiweke. Minority owners of the Kraken include Chris Ackerley, Ted Ackerley, Jay Deutsch, Mitch Garber, Adrian Hanauer, Samantha Holloway, Andy Jassy, Marshawn Lynch, Macklemore, Len Potter, Sam Slater, David Wright, and Jeff Wright.

General managers

 * Ron Francis, 2019–present

Head coaches

 * Dave Hakstol, 2021–2024
 * Dan Bylsma, 2024–present

Team captains

 * Mark Giordano, 2021–2022

Retired numbers

 * 32 was retired on October 23, 2021, immediately before the team played their first regular season home game, in recognition of the team being the 32nd to join the NHL and in honor of the 32,000 fans who placed deposits for tickets on the first possible day.
 * 99 was retired by the NHL for all its member teams in honor of Wayne Gretzky at the 2000 National Hockey League All-Star Game.

Team awards
The Kraken have four player awards that are given after each season. The Kraken's most valuable player, as voted on by Seattle-area media, receives the Pete Muldoon Award. The player with the most mentions in the three stars of each Kraken home game, computed using a points system, wins the Three Stars of the Year Award. The Guyle Fielder Award goes to the teammate who best exemplifies "perseverance, hustle, and dedication" as voted upon by their teammates and coaches. The Fan Favorite Award goes to a player who wins a fan vote.

Pete Muldoon Award
 * 2021–22: Jared McCann
 * 2022–23: Vince Dunn
 * 2023-24: Jared McCann

Three Stars of the Year Award
 * 2021–22: Philipp Grubauer
 * 2022–23: Jared McCann
 * 2023-24: Joey Daccord

Guyle Fielder Award
 * 2021–22: Yanni Gourde
 * 2022–23: Jaden Schwartz
 * 2023-24: Jaden Schwartz

Fan Favorite Award
 * 2021–22: Yanni Gourde
 * 2022–23: Matty Beniers
 * 2023-24: Joey Daccord

League awards
Calder Memorial Trophy
 * Matty Beniers: 2022–23

Scoring leaders
These are the top-ten point-scorers in franchise history. Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season. Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game
 * – current Kraken player

Individual records
These are the Kraken individual player records. If need be, figures are updated following the regular season.
 * Most goals in a season: Jared McCann, 40 (2022–23)
 * Most assists in a season: Vince Dunn, 50 (2022–23)
 * Most points in a season: Jared McCann, 70 (2022–23)
 * Most points in a season, defenseman: Vince Dunn, 64 (2022–23)
 * Most points in a season, rookie: Matty Beniers, 57 (2022–23)
 * Most penalty minutes in a season: Vince Dunn, 78 (2023–24)
 * Best +/– in a season: Vince Dunn, +28 (2022–23)
 * Most wins in a season: Martin Jones, 27 (2022–23)
 * Most shutouts in a season: Martin Jones and Joey Daccord, 3 each (2022–23 and 2023–24, respectively)
 * Lowest GAA in a season: Joey Daccord, 2.46 (2023–24)
 * Highest SV% in a season: Chris Driedger, .917 (2023–24)