*With apologies to Kenny Loggins and “Caddyshack” fans.
Above Photos: Kraken GM Ron Francis selects Shane Wright in the 1st round of the 2022 NHL Draft in Montreal.
A deep sea octopus mom – a real one, not the kind that hold hockey sticks – has been know to tend to her developing eggs for 4 1/2 years. So see, waiting 27 months for Shane Wright to hatch into a full-time Seattle Kraken isn’t really so long.
It was July of 2022 when fortune appeared to have smiled on Kraken general manager Ron Francis at the NHL Draft in Montreal. Wright, for the longest time considered the consensus #1 overall pick, had fallen to Seattle with choice #4. When the Kraken season opens Oct. 8, 2024 against St. Louis, we’ll begin to learn whether Wright is indeed a Fabergé egg – and whether the meticulous, patient nurturing the organization has provided him will have been worth it.
New Kraken coach Dan Bylsma has been a big part of that nurturing. At AHL Coachella Valley, he and Wright were together for 67 regular season and 36 playoff games over the past two seasons. In this Kraken Reaction, Byslma talks about the growth he’s seen as Wright has progressed from draft pick to prospect to what’s expected to be an NHL roster spot.