The NHL's newest franchise is here! The Seattle franchise announced on Thursday that they will be named the Seattle Kraken, and accompanied the news with logo and jersey designs. The team will begin play during the 2021-22 season, with an expansion draft taking place during the preceding offseason.
A lot can change between now and when the team will put a roster together, but I think if they play their cards right they can compete almost immediately.
There should be a good crop of goaltenders for Seattle to choose from, which should include one of Antti Raanta and Darcy Kuemper of the Coyotes, one of Matt Murray and Tristian Jarry of the Penguins, either of the Sharks' Martin Jones and Aaron Dell, and should also see Jonathan Quick left unprotected.
Grabbing any of those netminders as the team's starter already puts them on the map, and with players like Adam Henrique, David Perron and Travis Hamonic being talked about as options, this team could make noise in year one. There is still a lot of time between now and then, so players could re-sign, get traded, sign elsewhere, and more. But for now, it's fun to think about who could be wearing those fresh new jerseys.
I love their branding and think they'll have lots of jersey sales. Unfortunately, I believe they'll have immense pressure due to the overwhelming success of the recently expanded Vegas Golden Knights