For the fourth time in four seasons and the third time in a row, the Seattle Kraken are watching rather than participating in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. A 2-0 shutout loss at the hands of the first-place Colorado Avalanche on the final day of the regular season dropped their record to 34-37-11, with their final tally of 79 points representing a meager three-point improvement over the 2024-25 season.
The Kraken made some significant changes during the 2025 offseason, the first being the firing of head coach Dave Bylsma after a single season behind the bench and hiring veteran bench boss Lane Lambert in his stead. Despite a slight increase in points earned, the Kraken won fewer games and controlled a smaller share of expected goals at five-on-five (from 46.2% to 44.8%) than last season.
The team’s big offseason addition (winger Mason Marchment) turned out to be a poor fit and was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets for draft picks after a slow start (13 points in 29 games). He subsequently experienced a resurgence, scoring 15 goals and 32 points in 39 games, prompting the Kraken to acquire pending free-agent forward Bobby McMann (who delivered 10 goals and 14 points in 18 games after the trade deadline). Regardless, the team may have to go hunting for another top-six forward this summer.
The steps the Kraken must take this offseason will be different if their priority is to be a playoff team next season versus valuing a future Stanley Cup championship above all else. Whichever way general manager Jason Botterill chooses to go, he must keep these three keys in mind if he wants to orchestrate a successful offseason.
Replace Outgoing Francis with Innovative President of Hockey Operations
The first key to a successful offseason falls out of Botterill’s purview, but would impact him directly. Ron Francis (Seattle’s first general manager and eventual team president) announced that he would be stepping down after the season, and despite his efforts in shaping a nascent expansion organization, he could be seen as a long-overdue departure due to his hesitancy, conservative outlook, and uninspired vision for the team’s future.
While it looks as though the organization plans to leave Francis’ position as president vacant for the time being, the Kraken should use this opportunity to lure in one of the league’s sharp up-and-comers mentioned in promotion talks elsewhere. The highly publicized hiring process for the Toronto Maple Leafs’ open general manager role (and possibly the available role of president of hockey operations) has resulted in every candidate under the sun being thrown out as a potential successor to the outgoing Brad Treliving.
While the Kraken don’t possess the historic prestige of an Original Six franchise, the team’s owners are among the wealthiest in the league, have invested heavily in analytics, and boast brand new facilities that have not gone unnoticed around the league.
As I’ll touch on later, the Kraken also have an enviable prospect pool and enough salary cap room to make prospective candidates feel set up for success. A sustained level of competitive hockey has yet to materialize, but there are many worse situations for job seekers to parachute into in the NHL.
Add an Impact Forward Under 30
Four of the Kraken’s five highest-paid forwards are 29 or older, as are their four highest-paid defenders, and two primary goalies. For a veteran-heavy roster, this group has not done much winning and is now staring down unforgiving aging curves for many of its key players.
The Kraken also don’t boast an elite core of under-27 players at the NHL level. A foundation of Ryker Evans, Kappo Kakko, Matty Beniers, Berkley Catton, and Shane Wright represents a strong start, but is not an unparalleled collection of talent around the league.
Despite this, the Kraken have a bright future. The Athletic ranked the Kraken’s prospect pool the seventh-best in the league this season, a pool that will also add a top-eight pick in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, pending the results of the upcoming draft lottery. Winning the lottery and adding someone like Gavin McKenna or Ivar Stenberg would expedite the process of retooling a creaky roster.
Apart from an unlikely lottery win, the Kraken’s cap situation should prime them for a summer of increased activity. The team is projected to have just under $30 million in cap space this summer, and even if the 2026 free-agent class is worryingly shallow, Seattle has the flexibility to address this problem through multiple avenues. Going the trade route (Jason Robertson anyone?) could prove to be more lucrative since the team boasts nine first- or second-round picks over the next three drafts, and can afford to sacrifice what will likely be development projects for more immediate help.
Trade Veteran Players to Make Room for Youth
While it’s cheating to repeat one of the keys to success I highlighted for the 2025 offseason, it speaks to where the Kraken are at the moment that it needs to be rehashed in 2026.
A half-hearted trade deadline only brought in pending free agent Bobby McMann and failed to reignite a ship running out of fuel in the playoff race.
A 50/50 chance at a playoff spot seems to have turned management away from the retooling that began in the run-up to the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline. The fanbase is starved for success, but they are smart and would understand the utility of a full teardown and embracing of the youth, rather than fighting tooth and nail for the right to get obliterated by the Colorado Avalanche in Round One.
McMann, Jaden Schwartz, Jared McCann, Jamie Oleksiak, and Philipp Grubauer are all 29 or older, pending free agents this summer or next, and shouldn’t be viewed as key figures in the Kraken’s long-term future. Perhaps that’s harsh, and that group includes some fan favorites, but continuing to prioritize mid-level stopgaps over the rapidly developing youth contingent is a mistake.
Kraken Face Pivotal Offseason
While the Kraken have a great deal of work to do before being called Stanley Cup contenders, all is not lost. The front office has plenty of valuable draft picks to use or dangle over the next few seasons, cap space galore, and one of the best off-ice environments in the NHL.
While fans would rather the team not go into next season with the intention of losing, seeing a clear, rational plan going forward can overcome doubts about a retool.
If the franchise is to capitalize on a burgeoning youth movement, getting those next steps right is crucial. If not, I’ll be right back here next spring writing a very similar column.
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