Seattle Kraken Should Target These 5 Players At The 2025 NHL Draft

Barring a trade, the Seattle Kraken will have the eighth-overall pick in the first round of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft ( in Los Angeles on June 27th to 28th) following the outcome of the draft lottery last week. The franchise has picked second (2021), fourth (2022), 20th (2023), and eighth (2024) in the first round of the four drafts since joining the NHL as an expansion franchise.

Despite a shortage of top-end defenders and goaltenders in the system, the Kraken picked center Berkley Catton with their first-round pick last summer. He was ranked as the team’s best prospect in Scott Wheeler’s mid-season NHL prospect pool ranking, with the organization coming in at 10th overall after being 12th at the same point last season.

The Kraken had five defensemen among their top 15 prospects, but only two inside the top 10 and one ranked fifth. That disparity, coupled with a lack of goalies outside of Niklas Kokko (who had a good first season in the pro ranks) and Kim Saarinen, makes the team’s needs outside of the forwards that much more dire.

Of the six main defensemen the Kraken used this season, only Ryker Evans (23) is under 25 years of age. While the team could eventually trade for a blue-chip defensive piece from its surplus of promising forwards, getting them through the draft is a more cost-effective method.

Before we dive into potential picks for the Kraken, here are the latest prospect rankings and mock drafts from the biggest names in the scouting industry:

Sportsnet – Sam Cosentino / Jason Bukala
TSN – Bob McKenzie / Craig Button
ESPN – Rachel Doerrie
NHL – NHL Central Scouting
EliteProspects – EliteProspects Team
The Hockey Writers – The Hockey Writers Team Draft Guide
The Athletic – Scott Wheeler / Corey Pronman

As was the case with the Kraken’s positioning in the 2024 NHL Draft, the number eight selection in the first round likely won’t yield a top-pair defender, especially after presumed number-one pick Matthew Schaefer comes off the board.

Let’s dive into five players who are widely projected to be selected within the five-to-15 range in the first round of this year’s draft, most of whom would slide into the Kraken’s top-three on their internal prospect rankings.

Kashawn Aitcheson – Defenseman, Barrie Colts (Ontario Hockey League)

2024-25 Statistics: 64 Games Played (GP) – 26 Goals (G) – 33 Assists (A) – 59 Points (PTS)

The first prospect on the list is Kashawn Aitcheson, a 6-foot-2, 196-pound defenseman from the OHL who has often been listed in the range that the Kraken are set to pick in the first round of this year’s draft.

On the surface level, Aitcheson’s statline is salivating. The draft-eligible blueliner ranked third among all OHL defensemen in goals, seventh in points, and 10th in points-per-game while seeing heavy usage in all situations. That offensive production is paired with an NHL-ready frame, which Aitcheson uses to great aplomb as a heavy hitter and increased physicality in the corners.

NHL front offices will love Aitcheson’s all-around game, especially since his physical presence and on-ice intensity mark a clear floor for him at the NHL level. He appears to be the type of player who others look to in the locker room and leads with his aggressiveness and confident demeanour.

While it is very possible that Aitcheson falls to the Kraken at pick number eight, the lack of high-end blueliners after potential top pick Schaefer could see him be selected much higher than anticipated. He’s a developmental project in spite of his raw physical gifts, but the Kraken have the time to let him marinate prior to stepping up into the pro ranks.

Jackson Smith – Defenseman, Tri-City Americans (Western Hockey League)

2024-25 Statistics: 68 GP – 11 G – 43 A – 54 PTS

Few defenders in this draft boast a similar profile to the 6-foot-3, 195-pound Smith, a left-handed blueliner who can skate like the wind, use his size to deflect oncoming attackers, and move along the blue line on the power play. The native of Calgary, Alberta, is similar to Aitcheson, but projects to be a touch better in most scouting categories and should be the second defenseman taken after Schaefer.

Smith is a much more powerful skater, is more poised going forward in attack, and could develop the two-way profile needed to be an impact defender on the top pair. He isn’t as imposing as Aitcheson as a hitting threat in open ice, but more effectively leverages his size to win battles in the defensive zone.

Smith’s ceiling will be determined by how mobile he is at the NHL level and how instinctual his decision-making is across all three zones with and without the puck. Elite forwards are extremely gifted at making defenders pay for impulsive decisions and poor defensive reads, so the rearguard will have to make sure he isn’t always relying on his physical gifts to bail him out on the defensive end.

Radim Mrtka – Defenseman, Seattle Thunderbirds (Western Hockey League)

2024-25 Statistics: 43 GP – 3 G – 32 A – 35 PTS

If the Kraken are hoping to leave the 2025 NHL Draft with a hulking defender capable of playing top-four minutes in the NHL in the future, they could do worse than the right-handed Mrtka. The 6–foot-6 rearguard (a native of Czechia) spent his draft year in the Kraken’s backyard, playing for the Seattle Thunderbirds of the WHL and showed that he could acclimatize to the smaller ice in North America.

Mrtka is projected to be a top-four shutdown defensive option at the NHL level due to his size and mobility, and is likely to be a fixture on the penalty kill at his peak. He led the Thunderbirds in assists and points despite playing in only 43 of the team’s 68 games this season.

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Mrtka’s near-point-per-game production in his draft year is a strong predictor of future production at the professional level and, combined with his massive size and relatively decent skating ability, offers up a tantalizing talent to add to Seattle’s prospect pool.

Coaches famously cannot teach size, so the Kraken would have to be confident in their skill coaches’ capability to refine Mrtka’s blossoming offensive skill set and his ability to regularly get out of his own zone with possession.

Brady Martin – Center, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (Ontario Hockey League)

2024-25 Statistics: 57 GP – 33 G – 39 A – 72 PTS

There are few players who have seen their draft stock rise quicker than Martin. The pivot only stands at 6 feet tall and weighs 178 pounds, but plays with the aggressiveness and intensity of a player several inches taller and tens of pounds heavier. His feistiness in the corners and in front of the net is packaged with the offensive talent needed to rank second on the Greyhounds in both goals and points, which makes him one of the more intriguing figures heading into the draft.

Martin’s stock rose in conjunction with a dominant showing at the IIHF World U18 Championship. The forward’s three goals and 11 points in seven games powered Canada to a gold medal and earned him the honour of being named one of the tournament’s three best forwards by the media.

The Kraken – and any other team for that matter – would love to add a player with Martin’s profile to their prospect pool, but his upside isn’t high enough to warrant being picked in the top 10. The center’s speed and forechecking prowess, coupled with his play with the puck, make him an ideal fit on a contender’s third line or as a complementary piece on a secondary scoring line in need of a physical presence without an off-switch.

Watch for Martin to be picked much higher than expected for that reason.

Victor Eklund, Winger – Djurgårdens IF (HockeyAllsvenskan)

2024-25 Statistics: 42 GP – 19 G – 12 A – 31 PTS

Of the five prospects listed in this column, the 5-foot-11, 161-pound Eklund is the least likely player to be picked by the Kraken at number eight. He’s a slight, agile winger with quick feet and a relentless motor that is of use in any NHL lineup. His competitiveness should make up for any deficiencies in size, and could reassure organizations worried about how his play translates to the higher and more physical levels in North America.

Despite being the third-youngest skater on the Djurgårdens roster, Eklund led the team in goals and ranked sixth in points and earned a call-up for the 2025 World Junior Championships, where he impressed by tallying six points in seven games as Sweden finished fourth at the competition.

Eklund is very responsible defensively and an active forechecker, which is crucial in the modern game. He profiles as a player who could be the defensive conscience on a top-six forward line while also providing some pop with his underrated shot.

While Eklund’s size isn’t necessarily a dealbreaker and he could still grow, the issue is that the Kraken already have the likes of Eduard Sale, Carson Rekopf, and Jagger Firkus in the system, with the latter prospect the most like Eklund as a waterbug of a winger standing at 5-foot-11 and 163 pounds.

NHL teams should almost always draft the best player available versus addressing a need, but the Kraken’s system is so bereft of highly regarded defenders that a top-10 pick should be used on one of the several big and skilled blueliners likely to be available.

Kraken Can Build Towards Brighter Future at 2025 NHL Draft

Although very few NHL dynasties were built in a single day, the annual entry draft provides teams with the opportunity to lay the groundwork for years of future success, especially in the salary cap era.

The Kraken have done well to build a top-10 prospect pool from nothing, and enter the 2025 (three), 2026 (three), and 2027 (four) drafts with three or more picks over the first two rounds. Those numbers could balloon if general manager Ron Francis expedites the rebuild/re-tool over the next 12 months, making it very possible that the Kraken finish the 2020s as one of the Western Conference’s leading powers.

Of course, that’s a ways away, and the focus should be on this year’s draft. Even so, it’s difficult not to be positive about Seattle’s future, even if the recent struggles have put a damper on the optimism felt around the organization’s inaugural season. Is this the start of a new NHL dynasty, or another in a long line of unfruitful tear-downs?