A great goal-scoring winger, Jared McCann has flourished in an increased role since he joined the Seattle Kraken in their inaugural season. Over the last four seasons, he’s scored at a minimum of a 60-point pace. McCann even scored 40 goals four seasons ago.
But as an unrestricted free agent next offseason, his return to the Emerald City beyond the 2026-27 season remains uncertain. On the wing, the Kraken also have captain Jordan Eberle, recently-acquired Mackie Samoskevich, recently re-signed Bobby McMann, Kaapo Kakko, and top youngster Berkly Catton, creating a log-jam at the position.
Besides Eberle, McCann is the oldest of that group. He’s also the only winger without a contract beyond next season. Catton could eventually move back to center, but is best suited as a winger as of now. During his exit interview, McCann emphasized that he’s trying to help Seattle’s less experienced players, and that leadership may help his cause seeking another contract with the franchise.
“The young guys, I’m trying to help them as much as possible,” McCann said. “Tried to help them as much as I could this year, with growing. I feel like they’re a huge part of this organization moving forward. They’re gonna be the stepping stones to whatever happens [in the future].”
The Seattle Kraken will have two games in Finland, two tough road trips, and a rough end-of-season schedule in 2026-27.
Today, the NHL announced the full, 84-game schedule for every NHL team. The Kraken season begins on the road against the Calgary Flames on Oct. 1. After two games in Alberta, Seattle hosts their first home game on Oct. 4, also against the Flames.
There has been much discussion on how the Seattle Kraken can improve this offseason from their disappointing 34-37-11 season. From possible trades, free agent signings, the internal audit of the organization, and the draft, the fanbase has many opinions on what must be done for Seattle to turn the corner and get back to the playoffs.
One thing that is flying under the radar among the persistent Shane Wright trade rumors and free agency is the underwhelming performance of goalie Joey Daccord last year.
Daccord signed a five-year, $25 million contract ahead of the 2024-2025 season after showing flashes of brilliance the year before. He followed that up with a solid campaign, finishing eighth in the NHL in quality starts and 10th in saves. By most metrics, he was a top-half-of-the-league goalie. He had fully taken the starting job from Philipp Grubauer and made the Kraken look smart to give him that extension.
Then, last season happened. For whatever reason, things did not click as well for Daccord in 2025-26.
Armed with ample cap space coming out of the draft, even following the initial waves of free agency, the Seattle Kraken still have the resources in place to make several moves to improve their roster. Could bringing back a member of the inaugural team be in the cards?
Emerald City Spectrum writer Nick Lee dives into Seattle's cap situation and why it is time for the franchise to take action, including potentially bringing back Carson Soucy, before revisiting Shane Wright trade rumors and investigating two teams that could make the most sense to maximize their return for the former No. 4 overall pick.
According to multiple reports, first kicked off by NHL insider Elliotte Friedman of SportsNet.CA, the Seattle Kraken intend to trade center Shane Wright sometime this offseason.
Friedman quoted Wright’s agent saying, “I can confirm that we have had positive conversations with GM Jason Botterill, and he has agreed to move Shane this summer to a team in need of a top young centre.”
Unfortunately for the Kraken, if a deal does materialize, which isn’t as much of a given as Wright’s agent hinted, their leverage is compromised due to this report. Still, for a player who is not yet 23 years old and a former No. 4 overall pick who still has untapped upside, Seattle should be able to get some value in a trade package. Teams will bank on their own player development skills to get the most of a talent such as Wright. That should be tantalizing enough to garner a modest return at worst.
Let’s take a look at three possible trade scenarios for Seattle to move Wright in coming weeks.
Coming up short of a playoff berth last season, the Kraken hope that a handful of moves to shake up their roster this offseason will take them back to the postseason, including trading for Mackie Samoskevich. But did they do enough to get back into the fight for Lord Stanley's cup?
Emerald City Spectrum writers Nick Lee and Josh Frojelin discuss Seattle's potential playoff prospects as the offseason continues in the NHL and if the team has done enough to be a threat in the Pacific Division, check in on the moves made by the rest of the division over the past few months, and examine possible sale candidates at the next year's deadline if Seattle fails to contend.