Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravelli said on his podcast Monday that “The Seattle Kraken have too many forwards. They will look at some point in the next few weeks, I’m told, to move a forward if everyone stays healthy.”
Seattle received temporary salary cap relief when defenseman Vince Dunn got hurt. Dunn is eligible to come off the long-term injured reserve list as soon as Nov. 12. “When he is off LTIR,” Seravelli says, “They’re going to have to move someone. The two players everyone has circled are Yanni Gourde and Brandon Tanev.”
Both Gourde, a center (#37 in above photo, $5.17 million AAV), and Tanev, a winger (#13 in above photo, $3.5 million AAV), are in the final year of their contracts. Both players turn 33 next month, and will be unrestricted free agents at season’s end. So far this year, they’ve combined for just one goal and five assists, although scoring isn’t all they contribute to the Seattle lineup.
Both Gourde and Tanev have been mentioned in trade speculation ever since Kraken general manager Ron Francis signed $95 million worth of free agents in July. Seravelli says Francis acutally “rebuffed” earlier offers for Gourde. Even if losing one or both now makes economic sense, it’s not that simple.
- A trade partner this early in the season would have to value the pair’s feistiness, veteran presence, championship pedigree (Gourde) and penalty killing (Tanev) – and not be in the market for scoring help.
- How much salary will the Kraken be asked to retain? Other teams have cap issues, too.
- If roster players are dealt for picks and/or low-cost prospects, who at AHL Coachella Valley can fill their roles?
Seravelli calls the Kraken’s recent scoring issues a byproduct of the 2021 expansion draft. “The forward group available was largely 3rd and 4th line players. Then when you’re not drafting number one overall, it’s much harder to find stars.
“They don’t have anything close to resembling a superstar. As far as I know, they haven’t taken a big swing to get one. Vegas has been able to combat it because they traded for one in Jack Eichel, signed another in Alex Pietrangelo.”
Focus On Francis
Francis has been appropriately lauded for his stockpiling of prospects through the draft. We’re still a year or two away from being able to assess how those picks will ultimately perform at the NHL level.
The GM’s free-agency acquisitions have generally received lower marks, specifically goalie Philipp Grubauer and winger Andre Burakovsky. This summer’s signing of defenseman Brandon Montour has paid early dividends, but pundits and fans worry how the seven-year deals for him and center Chandler Stephenson will age.
Mixed reviews also follow Francis’ 2014-18 tenure as general manager of the Carolina Hurricanes. Among the lowlights, says Luke DeCock of the Raleigh News & Observer, “Francis hanging onto Eric Staal and Cam Ward as their trade value dwindled to nothing, and whiffing comically badly on his goalie acquisitions.” His Carolina drafts included two home runs and a bunch of strikeouts. “Francis drafted Sebastian Aho and Martin Necas, the only players left with the Hurricanes from Francis’ four drafts, albeit very good ones. His draft record was decidedly mixed.”
Francis has shown admirable patience in Seattle, rejecting short-term fixes which really aren’t. Five years from now, a roster of talented Kraken youngsters may well prove the wisdom of staying the course. However, ownership that presented the GM with an open checkbook has shown signs its own patience is waning, mirroring a restless fan base.
How well Francis manages the 2024-25 cap, and the potential loss of popular roster players, will play a part in how much longer he’s allowed to prove that slow and steady wins the race.