Transition is tough. Another longtime (inasmuch as a team that is only five years old can be longtime) Kraken has officially left.
Okay, the Kraken were pretty clear in their inaction by re-signing Tolvanen, and a player who isn’t signed until September 1st isn’t exactly melting down the free agent market. Still, it would make some sense for Seattle to bring him back. However, Kraken GM Jason Botterill looks like he is moving more towards a youth movement, and there just isn’t a lot of room for Eeli Tolvanen on the roster if they are trying to develop the young forwards.
The fact that Tolvanen ended up on the Kraken in the first place was a minor miracle in that the Nashville Predators put him on waivers(!) in December 2022 and Seattle was happy to snap him up in their second year of existence. Also a bit of history: Tolvanen scored the first playoff goal in Kraken franchise history.
In 288 games as a Kraken, Tolvanen had 67 goals and 72 assists for 139 points. In 2024, he scored 23 goals, but last season under Lane Lambert he really seemed to struggle and was even a healthy scratch at points during the season. But he is very polite, even checking in on an official after bumping into him.
This also means Tolvanen, who is Finnish, will not be on the Kraken when they go to Helsinki this November to play two games against the Carolina Hurricanes.
Eeli Tolvanen joins former Kraken Oliver Bjorkstrand and Tye Kartye in New York. He plays bigger than his size and likes to lay the body. Hopefully that tenacity will serve him well elsewhere.