Three Moves Kraken Can Make to Gain Momentum This Offseason
The Seattle Kraken just finished their fifth season in franchise history. For the third straight year, and fourth time in these five seasons, they missed the playoffs. Ron Francis has stepped down as president. Lane Lambert, as of now, remains the head coach.
This franchise needs some changes. They need some juice. They certainly need some offense. As a franchise stuck in the mud, it’s time to shake things up. Here are three moves the Kraken should make to reignite excitement among the fanbase.
Post-Mortem: Three Reasons Why Kraken Failed Once Again in 2025-26
The 2025-2026 NHL regular season is now over. The Seattle Kraken failed to score a goal in their season finale, going out without much of a whimper, falling 2-0 to Vegas to bring another disappointing campaign to an end.
The Kraken finished 34-37-11, totaling 79 points. That ranks third among the five seasons in Seattle Kraken history. They fell three points shy of being the second-highest point total in franchise history. They also failed to have a winning season in Lane Lambert’s first year as head coach, finishing below .500 for the fourth time out of the five years, along with three straight years of sub-.500 hockey.
The Kraken have gone through three head coaches in five seasons. It appears as if Lambert will get a second year, barring an unexpected development.
So, what happened? Why did the Kraken fail to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the third straight season?
Kraken Stumble Early, Fall Short Late in 5-3 Home Finale Loss vs. Kings
Trailing 2-0 to the Los Angeles Kings at Climate Pledge Arena on Monday, the Seattle Kraken fought to cut the deficit during the second period.
Both Kings goals came from forward Quinton Byfield beating Kraken defenseman Ryan Lindgren to the puck around the Los Angeles blue line and scoring on a breakaway, but Seattle hoped it would benefit from a similar bounce.
A Vince Dunn shot from the point was obstructed by a teammate and swept away at 5:16, and Berkly Catton went wide from the netfront off a centering pass nearly a minute later. Ryan Winterton also had a look from a tight angle at 6:51, but it would be the Kings that struck next at 7:13.
Alex Laferriere sent a shot wide off the end boards that barely slipped under Matty Beniers’ stick and straight to Trevor Moore in the left circle. Moore’s shot off the rebound beat Kraken goalie Nikke Kokko to make it 3-0.
The Kraken brought the game back within one goal twice during the third period, but ultimately fell 5-3 to close out their 2025-26 home slate. Eliminated from playoff contention, Seattle has two more road games this season.
Kraken Snap Skid with Shootout Win Against Vegas
It looked like the same story.
The Vegas Golden Knights executed a 4-on-2 rush, finished off by Brett Howden just 1:11 into the third period at Climate Pledge Arena on Thursday to put the Seattle Kraken down 3-1.
After losing 10 of their past 11 games, including five straight in regulation entering Thursday, the Kraken’s playoff hopes are only alive in a minute mathematical sense. Crumbling down the stretch, unable to find the urgency needed to string together positive results, Seattle could only be expected to pack it in once again.
However, after Berkly Catton benefited from a fortuitous bounce to cut it to 3-2, Bobby McMann tied the game midway through the third period. The Kraken played through an eventful overtime period before Matty Beniers and Catton scored in the shootout to lift Seattle to a 4-3 win.
Kraken the Ice: Have Kraken Become Calamari After Latest Deflating Loss to Mammoth?
While they still haven't been eliminated from playoff competition, the Kraken's chances continue to plummet by day as they suffered another devasting loss to the Mammoth.
Emerald City Spectrum writer Nick Lee offers up an unofficial obituary to Seattle's playoff chances after the latest defeat, explains why the time is now to extend Bobby McMann as he continues to score points in bunches, and breaks down what fans should be watching for the remainder of the season with the playoffs being a long shot.
Kraken Blow Lead, Allow Six Unanswered in Critical Loss to Utah
SEATTLE, Wash. - Jacob Melanson was doing Jacob Melanson things.
Moments after beating out a potential icing for the Seattle Kraken, which faced the Utah Mammoth at Climate Pledge Arena on Thursday, the 22-year-old forward redirected a Ryan Lindgren shot past Utah goalie Karel Vejmelka to extend Seattle’s lead to 3-1 early in the second period.
That kind of high-motor, physical play getting instantly rewarded is just what a Kraken team fighting for a Western Conference wild card spot needs. Instead, it was instantly stripped away.
The Mammoth successfully challenged for goaltender interference, bringing the score back to 2-1. Utah tied it four minutes later, erasing its 2-0 deficit and scoring four more unanswered goals to secure a 6-2 win.
Kraken’s Jekyll-and-Hyde Play Continues to Plague Seattle
You know that friend or family member that spends several years in college, not knowing what they want to do when they graduate? They declare and undeclare major after major, switching career paths faster that Indiana Jones replacing the idol in Raiders of the Lost Ark.
That is the Seattle Kraken in 2025-2026. They cannot decide if they are playoff team or not. During certain stretches, they look like they can compete with anyone. They get back into a playoff spot and look like they will have postseason hockey in Seattle. Then, out of the blue, they look like a team playing hockey together for the first time in their lives.
Kraken Fall Back Into Bad Habits, Suffer 6-2 Loss to Lightning
It started with Jared McCann.
The Seattle Kraken forward said as much, referring to his turnover to Tampa Bay Lightning forward Gage Concalves on a hit along the boards that ultimately led to the latter giving his side a 1-0 lead just 5:45 into Tuesday’s game at Climate Pledge Arena, but it didn’t end there.
Between Tampa’s relentless forecheck and a couple of crucial mistakes on Seattle’s end, the Lightning stormed to a 3-0 lead. The Kraken managed to cut it to 3-2 midway through the second period, but more mistakes doomed them to a 6-2 loss.
Bottom-Six Propels Kraken to Big Win Over Panthers
After snapping their four-game losing streak with a 5-2 win against the Vancouver Canucks, the Seattle Kraken’s new-look top line and trade deadline acquisition Bobby McMann’s three-point debut stole the show. Less than 24 hours later, it was the Kraken bottom-six that powered Seattle to a back-to-back sweep with a 6-2 win against the Florida Panthers at Climate Pledge Arena on Sunday.
With two goals each from the third- and fourth-line, the Kraken displayed the top-to-bottom production they’ll need if they want to hold down a spot in the Western Conference playoff picture, which they reclaimed after San Jose lost 7-4 to Ottawa on Sunday.
“We need everybody,” Kraken coach Lane Lambert said. “That’s the way it’s going to be, and certainly we need everybody and needed everybody on a second night of a back-to-back with a rested team here waiting for us, and Joey (Daccord) played well right off the start, and then our fourth line stepped up and got us going with some energy … so huge for us, but we’re a four-line hockey team, and that’s what we need out of them.”
Kraken the Ice: How Can Bobby McMann Help Struggling Seattle Squad?
Dropping a fourth straight game, the Kraken once again were undone by what coach Lane Lambert called "mind-boggling" errors in a 5-1 loss to the Avalanche.
Emerald City Spectrum writer Nick Lee dives deep into Seattle's ongoing struggles since returning from the Olympic break, examines how Bobby McMann can help the Kraken right the ship when he finally get his irrigation paperwork cleared, and takes a look at what's on deck as Seattle enters a crucial point in the schedule.
Kraken Fall Out of Playoff Spot as Skid Continues in 5-1 Loss to Avalanche
The difference between the first and second period was night and day for the Seattle Kraken against the Colorado Avalanche at Climate Pledge Arena on Thursday.
A lethargic effort from Seattle and a three-point period from Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon put the Kraken in a 3-0 hole through 20 minutes, but the home side came out of the gates swinging in the second period.
Despite building up a 10-0 shots on goal advantage through 10:25, Seattle could not manage to get on the board before Adam Larsson committed a tripping penalty to put the Kraken on the penalty kill.
What should have been a momentum killer was the exact opposite. Chandler Stephenson set up Ryker Evans for a short-handed goal, and Seattle was back in business.
For less than four minutes, unfortunately.
Analysis: Breaking Down Where Newly Acquired Bobby McMann Fits with Kraken
Buzzer beaters are certainly more common in basketball than hockey. However, for Seattle Kraken general manager Jason Botterill, he sank one before the proverbial buzzer of the NHL trade deadline, which was at 12 PM PT on Friday.
The shot that sank through the net came after a very quiet deadline day on the trade front in Seattle otherwise, though news broke that the franchise had extended captain Jordan Eberle on Friday morning.
Pulling the trigger shortly before the deadline came and went, Botterill and company swung a deal for Bobby McMann of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who was acquired by Seattle for a 2027 second-rounder and 2026 fourth-round draft pick. They acquired him without parting with any of their three picks in the top 46 of the 2026 NHL Draft.
Kraken GM Jason Botterill Breaks Down McMann Acquisition, State of Team After Trade Deadline
Striking at close to midnight - at least proverbially - the Seattle Kraken acquired Bobby McMann from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for a 2027 second-round pick and a 2026 fourth-round pick right before the NHL Trade Deadline on Friday.
McMann, 29, is a forward on the final season of a two-year contract with a $1.35 million AAV. He has 19 goals and 32 points through 60 games this season, which ranks second-most on Seattle behind captain Jordan Eberle (42 points).
Of course, that production came with superstar Auston Matthews at center. According to Natural Stat Trick, McMann had 238:09 of 5-on-5 ice time on a line with Matthews and Max Domi, the most of any single line combination in Toronto this season.
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