Kraken Notes: Scouts, Coaches, Orcas, Horses, & More Hockey Mammals

Time to clear out stray bits from the hockey cupboards, collected from around the Kraken-verse.

When the Seattle Kraken travel to Vancouver on Sept. 24 for their second preseason game, they’ll find something new inside Rogers Arena.

Specifically, they’ll be skating and taking faceoffs over the Canucks new center-ice logo. The large orca logo, which fills the center-ice circle, will be officially unveiled when the Canucks play the Kraken in what will be their first 2024 preseason game.

High Praise For Campbell From 16-Year NHL Vet

To the list of Jessica Campbell fans, add Shea Weber. The defenseman starred in Nashville for 11 seasons, and five more in Montreal. Weber and Campbell, new Kraken assistant coach, have crossed paths at clinics and schools, most recently at the Kelowna Hockey Fest.

“What she’s doing for the game and women’s hockey and everything – it’s amazing,” Weber said to Kelowna Now. “She’s well deserving and earned her spot and I think it’s such a cool thing for young girls and everyone to see how well she’s done.”

Definitely Not Horse Hockey

A Canadian website is extolling Philipp Grubauer’s greatest saves – not with a stick or blocker, but with a harness and saddle. From Horse Canada: “Seattle Kraken goaltender Philipp Grubauer volunteers at the Washington horse rescue group Save a Forgotten Equine (SAFE).

“SAFE isn’t a sanctuary; instead, they rehabilitate and re-home horses to loving homes. As part of its program, SAFE horses are given dental and veterinary care to ensure they’re healthy and able to have another career.”

Grubauer has been known to muck out stables for the cause. “The best thing is to see the transformation of the horses,” he explains. “How they suddenly blossom and radiate fun and life energy again. It’s a lot of work, but we’re happy to do it because we want to save as many animals as possible.”

Note: Grubauer expands on his love for horses, and what he’s learned that translates to his on-ice demeanor, in tomorrow’s column.

Definitely Could Be Horse Hockey

Don’t take this with a grain of salt; take it with a 35-pound horse lick. Three different sports books have given their preseason predictions on how the Kraken will fare in the 2024-25 regular season. Caesar’s sees Seattle finishing with 88 points; Draft Kings and Bet MGM both peg the Kraken to reach 87 points.

That would place Seattle 5th in the Pacific Division, 10th in the Western Conference, 23rd in the NHL. In other words, out of a playoff spot. All three sports books forecast Western Conference teams to dominate the top of the composite standings: 1. Edmonton (108-109 points); 2. Dallas (103 points); 3. Colorado (102-103 points).

Kraken Scout In Search Of ‘All The Good Players’

Eddie Olczyk, son of the Kraken TV analyst, covers a wide territory as a team scout: anywhere amateur hockey is played in the United States. The Kraken website says the younger Olczky is “focused on amateurs in the U.S. and NCAA free agents.” He was plucked from Bemidji State in Minnesota, where he’d been an assistant coach for five seasons.

“For me now, I have to go out and find all of the good players,” he said to the Bemidji Pioneer. “It doesn’t matter what level they’re playing. I have to see if they are capable of getting that opportunity to play at the next level. The lens between recruiting as a college coach and evaluating as a scout is the biggest difference.

“Luckily for me, I’m really tight with a lot of coaches in college. When I’m in the rinks or I’m on the road, I still get to have those relationships with those guys. We get to bounce ideas off each other and talk hockey. That’s what I love.”

One other Olczyk love is current Kraken prospect Lleyton Roed, signed out of Bemidji State as a free agent. A 2024 Hobey Baker nominee, Roed was signed to a three-year entry level contract by Seattle back in March, and spent the tail end of the AHL season with the Kraken’s Coachella Valley farm team.