Seattle Kraken center Matty Beniers isn’t known for spicy public retorts. The 2023 Calder Trophy winner usually doesn’t even return chirps on the ice.
“I just let it happen. What am I going to chirp? The next time, you’re lining me up (for a big hit). I’m fine without them trying to kill me.”
But with five seasons and 331 NHL games under his belt, Beniers appears ready to publicly stand up for his team and his city – in no uncertain terms. The subject of his ire was Dallas Stars forward Jason Robertson, who this summer turned down an apparent eight year, $120 million deal if he accepted a trade to Seattle.
Talking Like A Future Kraken Captain
“There’s a tough rep about Seattle,” Beniers told Mark Lazerus of The Athletic, “because it’s rainy, and maybe the city. But guys love it in Seattle – the guys that are there. When the sun’s out, it’s beautiful. There’s so much nature; there are a lot of things to do.
“So yeah, it obviously doesn’t feel good when you’re on a team and you try to get someone else and they don’t want to come. But at the same time, if you don’t want to be here, we don’t want you, anyway.”
That’s future captain talk – maybe future Seattle mayor talk.
Beniers’ response has gotten wide media attention, but there’s another sentence from Lazerus’s story that has flown under the radar.
Here it is: “Players around the league rave about Seattle as a road city, and it boasts one of the league’s best arenas.” Take that, keyboard warriors dissing the Emerald City.
So why did Robertson, and Artemi Panarin before him, reject the king’s ransoms offered by GM Jason Botterill? The clue is in Lazerus’ next line: “The Kraken, mired in mediocrity, have struggled to lure elite players.”
In other words, build a competitive team and display front office vision, and they will come.
In the meantime, way to go, Matty.
Earlier Kraken:
— Impressive Showings Lifted Kraken Goalie Prospect To KHL Starter
